Changes
by hxchick
Summary: Changes are coming to the Rossi family. How will they deal with them and still remain a close and loving family? Sequel to 'Happily Ever After' and third in the 'Rossi Family' Universe. OC. H/P and M/G pop up throughout the story.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Criminal Minds is owned by CBS. I own nothing but my imagination.

Changes-Chapter 1

**~Finally! This is the sequel to 'Happily Ever After!' This story probably won't be updated with any regularity for the next few months as I finish up my course work and prepare for my comprehensive exams, but the characters were speaking to me and I didn't want to wait until December to post. Enjoy!**

**~Don't forget to check out the Chit Chat on Authors Corner forum for rules and nomination forms for this year's Profiler's Choice awards!**

* * *

Dave awoke to the warmth of sunshine streaming through the open balcony doors of his and JJ's master suite. He could hear the gentle waves from the Mediterranean Sea lapping up against their private beach and that sound, combined with his wife's quiet breathing, made for a very peaceful environment.

He propped his head up on one elbow and watched his wife sleep, being quiet as possible because he knew she needed her rest. After all that had happened over the past four months, he wanted her to continue taking it easy, no matter how many times she told him she was fine. After seeing her shot in the chest, just before he took a bullet to the shoulder, he was left with certain anxieties about her and one of those worries was that she would try to do too much, too soon and somehow spark a relapse and he would be damned if he would let that happen. He felt she'd done too much already during their whirlwind tour of Italy and he was going to make sure she relaxed during these last few days in the country, her and their daughter both.

Dave felt a grin overtake his face when he thought of the two feisty women in his life. They had become a family late in life and there were times he felt as if he had to constantly try to make up for lost time, but that feeling was beginning to slowly pass. Sure, he didn't know about his daughter until she was nearly sixteen and he'd been without Jennifer for that long, but after the events of the spring, when all of their lives had been in danger, he learned to focus on the future and not what he'd missed out on in the past. He knew that marrying the love of his life and becoming nearly a full-time father to their teenage daughter had been the best choices he had ever made; it was as if the two of them made him whole again, they brought light into his previously dark world.

Sadly, they would be losing their daughter soon…well, maybe not losing her, but she would be attending school more than 2,000 miles away from them. Yeah, Garcia had set him up with a webcam and a Skype account, but he knew it wouldn't be the same as sitting across the table from her and sharing an afternoon snack. While he was proud that she'd gotten into the prestigious California school, a large part of him wished she'd chosen a school closer to home so she could've lived with them a little longer. He loved being a parent and even though he knew their daughter would still need them and love them, it wouldn't be the same.

He was pulled from his reverie as his wife began to stir and he saw her eyes slowly open. "Morning," he said as he leaned down and gave her a gentle kiss.

"Mmmmm, morning," she replied. "I could get used to waking up like this."

"You mean fully satiated and without a stitch of clothing on?" He asked, remembering their late night activities.

"That," JJ said with a smile, "And with the sound of the ocean nearby."

"Can't help you there, although now that we won't have to worry about leaving a kid at home, maybe we can take more weekend trips to the coast?" Dave asked.

"That sounds like a _great_ idea, although that time might be limited if we have another child," she told him and watched as his jaw dropped in shock. JJ couldn't carry another child due to complications she had when she gave birth to Abby, but Dave had broached the subject of a surrogate a few months ago. JJ hadn't been too enthusiastic about it at the time and he'd let it go with the promise to revisit the subject in the fall, after they had gotten Abby safely to school; he had no idea that she'd been thinking about it since then.

"Really?" He breathed.

JJ nodded, "The idea of having another child is appealing, especially after spending so much time with Abby during this past month. I realized that I love being a mother and I don't want to give it up for another couple of decades, not that we're going to just send Abby off with a pat on the head, but you know what I mean."

"So you want to have another kid with me, huh?" Her husband asked as his grin overtook his face.

"I do, but I don't want to move on anything until we get Abby off to school; I want to give her our full attention for the next month."

"That sounds reasonable, but I'll have my lawyer start the initial search for a surrogate as soon as we get back to the States. That way we're not starting from scratch in September," he said and JJ nodded. "Should we tell Abby?"

"I think we can, she already knows we've been thinking about it."

"How does she know that?" Dave asked, he sure hadn't spilled the beans.

"It came up during one of our girl talks," she told him. "She really wants a younger sibling, so I think she'll be excited."

"I'm glad," he said as he kissed her on the forehead and then got up from the bed. "I'm going to go and get breakfast put together."

"I'll join you after my shower," JJ said and blew him a kiss as he left the room.

Once she was under the warm spray, JJ let her body relax even more. She didn't get as sore anymore after long days of activity and it felt good to be healthy again. While she would always have the scars, both physical and mental, of her shooting and her family's ordeal the previous spring, they were no longer at the forefront of her mind. As she soaped herself up, she thought about work and how she could've gone back over a month ago if she had wanted, but she was glad she'd taken this sabbatical because it gave her more time with her daughter before she made the move to California and it gave her time to recover more fully, time she would be grateful for once they had another small child in their lives.

It was strange to think about having another child with Dave. For fifteen years it had just been her and Abby and now suddenly, less than three years later, she was with the love of her life who also happened to be her father's daughter _and _they were going to have another child. It sometimes blew her mind when she thought about how her life had changed in the past few years.

Pulling herself from her reverie, she stepped out of the shower, quickly dried off and slipped into her swimsuit and a t-shirt of Daves. It seemed as if they had been going non-stop since arriving in Italy and it would be nice to have these last few days by the sea, just relaxing and catching up with each other. As she stepped out of her room, she passed by her daughter's room and heard her talking on her cell phone. She smiled; there was only one person Abby had been keeping in touch with while on their trip and that person was Jack Hotchner. "Ah, young love," she whispered as she made her way into the kitchen.

Abby, who had heard her mother pass by her room, finished her conversation with Jack and disconnected the call. There were times she missed him so much it hurt and she shuddered thinking about the fact that they would soon be separated for at least a year. She pushed that thought out of her mind as she changed out of her nightgown and into her swimsuit. It would be nice to lounge by the beach and relax for the next couple of days since they had been going non-stop since they arrived in Italy over two weeks ago.

Even though she was looking forward to getting back to the States and Jack, Abby knew she would miss Italy and the memories they had made there. It had been fun going through the 'old country' with her grandmother and meeting all of her relatives, even if she didn't understand what they were saying. The biggest surprise for her was that her dad actually made a decent tour guide when they were in Rome and Florence and she'd had a lot of fun in the various museums and shops with him. She hoped they would have as much fun, albeit a more relaxing fun, here at the beach house.

The town they were staying in was gorgeous. It was a small village on the sea and it had a wonderful bakery and farmer's market, not to mention a fabulous local artistry. Her mom had already bought a small sculpture and it was going to be shipped to the States soon after they left. She was glad the three of them had taken the vacation during the summer, instead of over her spring break as they had originally planned, since the summer gave them better weather and more time to enjoy it. Abby felt a little guilty thinking like that since it was the shooting and the subsequent threat by her dad's ex-wife which had forced them to stay home during spring break but it was much more fun not having school assignments and tests hanging over her head.

Once she was in her swimsuit, she threw a pair of shorts and a t-shirt on over it and made her way to the veranda, where her parents were already seated.

"Morning mom, morning dad," she said as she gave each of them a peck on the cheek and sat down.

"Good morning, honey," JJ said as she took a bite of scrambled eggs.

"Morning Pumpkin; how are you today?" Abby knew that was code for 'did you have any nightmares?' Her nightmares had been bad after the shootings and after the whole debacle with Suzette, but months of therapy had lessened them considerably, except when they travelled

"I'm good, I slept well and called home earlier this morning," she told him as she grabbed a chunk of bread and a cup of coffee.

"So how _is_ Jack?" Dave asked, knowing she wouldn't have called anyone else. Sure enough, she turned bright red as she put some strawberries on her plate.

"He's fine," she said. "Today's his day off so he's going to spend it relaxing, much like I am."

"Me too," JJ said. "As nice as it was to see your family and the big cities of Italy, I'm going to enjoy just baking in the sun today."

"I wish Nonna was here, though; I miss her," Abby said with a slight frown. The Rossi matriarch was staying with family in Tuscany for the next two weeks but she promised to be back in DC well before Abby left for California.

Dave snorted, "Trust me, if my mother was here, there would be very little relaxing. She would have us doing something." His mother was the type of person who was constantly moving while on vacation and he'd inherited much of that trait, but the two women at the table with him had shown him the value of taking it easy. "Now finish your breakfasts so we can start relaxing," he ordered and both women gave amused snorts as they went back to their plates.

xxxxxxxxxx

An hour later, the three of them had made their way to the padded lounge chairs on the beach and they were beginning to set up for the day. Dave was pawing through his wife's beach bag and was not paying much attention to his wife or daughter.

"Hey Abby? Did you remember the sunscreen?" He asked. He set his wife's bag on the chair, looked over at their daughter, and froze when he saw her. "What in the HELL are you wearing?" He asked when he saw her new bikini. "This is not a nude beach!"

"What are you talking about?" She asked in confusion. "This is my bikini."

"No, no it's not!" He exclaimed. "Your bikini didn't have a push up top like this one and the bottoms were boy cut shorts and they hid _much _more than these do!"

"Yeah, except I grew out of that one, thank God, so this is my new one," she told him with a sigh. Couldn't he, just once, not hassle her on her choice of swimwear?

"Jen," he complained, turning towards his wife. "Have you seen this?" He watched as his wife took off his long t-shirt and revealed the skimpiest one-piece bathing suit he'd ever seen. The top part plunged lower than he thought was possible and the bottom part rode up so high, he almost wondered why she bothered with it at all. "Of course you have," he said, answering his own question. "And of course you don't have a problem with it." By this time, Abby had gone to the shoreline and was wading in the sea.

"I really don't Dave; Abby's old enough to pick out her own clothes and, trust me, her swimsuit is pretty tame compared to what else is out there."

"It's pretty tame compared to what _you're _wearing," he told her as he licked his lips and moved closer. "How come you're not wearing _your_ bikini?" He asked, "Not that I mind this swimsuit."

JJ felt his arms wrap around her middle and she sighed, "I didn't wear my bikini because I didn't think the scars from my bullet wound and subsequent surgery would go too well with it."

"Believe me Jen; _nothing _could take away your beauty…NOTHING!" With that, his lips crashed down onto hers and they stayed that way for another minute until they both had to come up for air.

"Like I said, this swimsuit looks great on you, but you know where else I want to see it?"

"Where?" She asked.

"On our bedroom floor later tonight," he told her with a waggle of his eyebrows.

She smiled seductively, "I think that can be arranged."


	2. Chapter 2

Changes-Chapter 2

* * *

"God, it's good to be home!" JJ exclaimed as they walked into the cabin; they had been in Europe for nearly a month and they were all looking forward to sleeping in their own beds that night.

"Ugh, I know," Abby agreed. "After that nine hour flight, all I want to do is take a hot shower and then go to bed." Thankfully, her parents had arranged for a cleaning service to come in the day before, so all of the bed linens and towels were clean.

"Flying on the jet has really spoiled me," Dave agreed. "If that kid behind me had kicked my seat one more time…well, let's just say the air marshals would've earned their paychecks."

Both of the women smiled as they all walked into the kitchen. Abby rustled around for an edible snack in the cabinets, while JJ grabbed bottles of water from the fridge. "Drink up," she ordered as passed it out. "Flying can be dehydrating and I don't want any of us getting sick." Both Abby and Dave nodded and guzzled their bottles of water.

"I'm going to hit the shower," Abby said as she threw her empty bottle into the recycle bin.

"I'm going to soak in the Jacuzzi," JJ said with a nod. They both left the room and minutes later, Dave could hear the water running on the second floor. He briefly straightened up the kitchen before heading for the stairs. He got about halfway there when a familiar ringtone filled the air.

"What, are you psychic?" Dave asked his friend and boss by way of a greeting.

"No, Garcia has been monitoring your flight and I assumed you'd made it home by now," Hotch told him.

"We got home just a few minutes ago; the girls are already showering and we're all about to pass out."

"Can you delay your sleep for a few hours?" Hotch asked and Dave could hear the happiness in his voice.

"Probably. Why?" He asked, wondering what in the hell was up with his friend.

"Because I need you to be my best man; Emily and I are getting married in less than three hours."

"What? Holy shit!" Dave exclaimed. "What in the hell did I miss while I was gone?"

"A bunch of things, but I really need you here today; can you and the girls make it?"

"We'll be there," Dave promised as he hung up the phone. Married? He thought as he went up the stairs. What else had gone on while they had been gone?

xxxxxxxxxx

Two hours later, the front door of the newly purchased Hotchner-Prentiss (soon to be Hotchner) house opened and the screaming started. JJ and Emily, upon seeing each other, began jumping up and down and squealing like two thirteen year old girls who hadn't seen each other for the entire summer. "Oh my God, you're getting MARRIED!" JJ shrieked.

"I know!" Emily screamed back. Both Dave and Abby thought it couldn't get much worse, but then Garcia joined the fray and they both nearly went deaf. The excited shrieking was unintelligible by that point, so the two of them left the women on the porch while they went in search of quieter spaces. Thankfully, the closed front door muted out much of the bat-like screeches.

"What the hell?" Hotch said, rushing into the hallway, "I thought someone was dying or something!"

"Nope, just my wife and your soon-to-be wife getting caught up," Dave said with a grin. "And then Garcia joined them and…well, you can imagine."

"I thought I heard my baby girl's screeches out there," Derek said as he entered the hallway. He was holding three beers and he gave one to Dave and one to Hotch.

"Sorry Abby, I forgot to bring one for you," he said with a grin.

The teen rolled her eyes, "That's okay Derek. Is Jack around?" She asked in what she hoped was a casual voice.

"I think he's in the kitchen," Hotch told her with a smile.

"I think I'll go in there and get something to drink," she said as she left the guys to their own devices.

"Yeah, I'm sure that's ALL she'll get in there," Derek snickered.

"That's my daughter, asshole, so yeah, we're going to assume that all she's getting is a cold drink of water, capisce?"

"Sure thing, Dave," he said but he still had a shit eating grin on his face.

Ignoring his colleague's expression, Dave turned to his best friend. "So what the hell, Aaron? You, the least spontaneous person on the planet, are getting married in less than an hour? To someone you've been dating for less than five months?"

"Yeah man, what gives?" Morgan asked as he took a long draw of his beer. "Even baby girl and I aren't ready to take that step yet."

"Strauss happened," Hotch told them as they moved from the entryway into the living room. "She caught wind of our relationship and wants to see both of us in her office on Monday."

"So? We're all breaking the fraternization rules. Hell, Strauss walked in on Penelope and I in the copy room and nothing happened to us."

"Don't remind me," the unit chief muttered, thinking about all of the feathers he had to unruffle that day. "And you're not 'fraternizing' with someone you supervise, none of you are, but I'm Em's supervisor so it's different for us."

"You're taking advantage of rule 808A?" Dave asked and Hotch nodded.

"You want to tell me what 808A is?" Derek asked.

"If the two fraternizing agents are married, they can't be reassigned due to their relationship. So as long as Em and I are married before we meet with Strauss on Monday, we're in the clear. Dave, you'll have to conduct her annual review, are you okay with that?"

The older man nodded, "I'm fine with it, but are you sure about this Aaron? Take it from someone who has many failed marriages under his belt, this is NOT something you want to rush into."

"I love her, Dave. I love her more than I ever thought possible. Hell, I've had the ring for almost two months."

"That's all I needed to hear," Dave said with a smile as he clapped his friend on the back.

While the guys were talking, the women were also having a discussion of their own but since they had moved from the porch to Emily and Aaron's bedroom, their conversation was a bit more subdued. The fact that Emily's mother was also in the room was the main reason for that. She was the only person, other than Abby and Jack, from outside of the team who had been invited to the impromptu wedding.

"You should NOT get married just to save your job, Emily," the older woman said sternly.

"I'm not, mother," Emily snipped back. "I love Aaron with all of my heart and I want to be his wife. Sure, we might be doing this a bit faster than normal, but from the moment we first kissed, I knew I would be his wife someday. All we're doing is speeding up the timeline."

"But Emily-" Her mother started, but she wouldn't hear any more.

"I've heard this from you for the past twelve hours, mother, and I'm done. I've made up my mind and there's nothing you can do to change it."

"Fine," her mother snipped. She exited the room so she wouldn't say anything else to upset her daughter. Even though she was miffed at the way Emily was going about things, she was genuinely happy for her and she didn't want to ruin the her day.

After Elizabeth Prentiss left the room, JJ and Penelope stood behind Emily. "What are you going to wear?" JJ asked, just as Penelope asked, "What are you going to do with your hair?"

Emily laughed, "I'm wearing a red dress that Aaron loves and I'm not sure how I'm going to wear my hair, I was hoping you two could help me."

The women went to work on her long tresses and noticed she looked apprehensive. "Wedding day jitters?" Garcia asked as she turned on the curling iron.

"No…it's just…do you guys think I'm making a mistake? Because I don't but maybe I'm too close to the situation."

"Em, you love Hotch and while you haven't been dating very long, you've known him for years. Plus, the two of you bought a house together. You're _not_ making a mistake," JJ assured her.

"Thanks Jayje, I just needed someone to reassure me," Emily said, looking much happier.

"What does Jack think about everything?" Penelope asked.

"When we told him our plans, he hugged me and welcomed me to the family," she said with tears in her eyes.

"Awwwww," JJ and Pen said in unison. "What a sweetie!"

While the women were working on the fashion details of the wedding, Jack was in the kitchen, loading the refrigerator with beer and soda so it would be cold after the wedding. He looked up when he heard a familiar voice squeal, "Jack!" A split second later, he had Abigail Rossi in his arms kissing him like they were in an airplane about to crash.

"God I missed you!" She said when they finally came up for air.

"I missed you too, Abs," he said. She tried to pull away from him, but he kept his arms wrapped tightly around her. "You have no idea how much."

"So your dad and Emily, huh? It's kinda fast, don't you think?"

Jack nodded, "Yeah, it's fast but they had to do it for work. Plus, they're both really happy together and Emily's cool, so I'm okay with it."

"That's good, you wouldn't want to hate your step mommy to be," Abby smirked.

"God, stepmother," Jack said. "That sounds so weird!"

"You know what sucks about this whole thing? Our first night alone in over a month will have to be postponed because of this," Abby pouted. "I was really looking forward to picking up where we left off."

Jack smiled, "We still have a month before you leave for school and I leave for my cross-country adventure. I'm sure we'll be able to make up for lost time."

"I'm going to start now, if you don't mind." With that, their make out session resumed, only to be interrupted moments later by a feminine, "Ahem."

Both kids pulled apart to see Elizabeth Prentiss standing in the doorway. "There are many things that need to be completed before the wedding; is this really the best way to use your time?"

"No ma'am," Jack said sheepishly before introducing Abby to Emily's mother. "Abby, this is Ambassador Elizabeth Prentiss, ma'am, this is my friend Abigail Rossi."

"You're David Rossi's daughter?"

Abby nodded, "Yes ma'am."

"Well," she sniffed, "Let's hope that the two of you can refrain engaging in any more public displays of affection; it is really quite unbecoming for people your age." With that, she left the room and the two teens just stared after her.

"_She's _going to be your grandmother?" Abby finally asked in disbelief.

Jack nodded and then put his face in his hands, "You get the nice grandmother who bakes cookies and sides with you against your parents and I get _that_."

"Look on the bright side, Jack. She looks like she's pretty loaded, so you'll probably get pretty good birthday and Christmas presents from her." He didn't look convinced, so Abby continued, "Plus, Nonna loves you so you can totally borrow her when you need a loving grandmother, okay?"

"Okay," he agreed. They leaned in to kiss again, but Jack suddenly pulled back. "I can't do it, not while _she's _in the house. I can still feel the waves of judgment hitting me."

Abby just laughed as she helped him load the refrigerator with the various drinks.

xxxxxxxxxx

As she stood in the shower later that night, JJ reflected on her friend's wedding. Father Jimmy had performed the ceremony in their living room and while it was low-key and casual, it was still a beautiful ceremony. Hotch had bought up nearly every rose in the tri-state area and the living room had been lit by the fireplace and candlelight, which gave the room a welcoming glow.

Emily's red dress, while scandalous for her mother, who had no doubt envisioned a fancy white wedding for her daughter, was perfect for her and Aaron's blue suit complimented it nicely. Both Dave and JJ stood up for their friends while the rest of the team, the kids and Ambassador Prentiss watched from the various easy chairs in the room. By the time the couple said 'I do,' there was hardly a dry eye in the house.

The wedding reception consisted of locally delivered pizza, garlic bread and breadsticks and the group sat around the table telling their favorite Hotch and Emily stories. To everyone's surprise, the ambassador stayed for that part and joined in the laughter. By the end of the night, everyone was exhausted, but in a happy way.

JJ's impromptu gift to the newlyweds was taking their son off of their hands for the evening so they could have a proper honeymoon night. Dave had grumbled about it, mentioning numerous times that the guest room was right next to Abby's room and what was to stop the hormone laden kids from hooking up during the night? JJ assurances that they wouldn't be that dumb didn't assuage her husband and she wouldn't put it past him to sleep on a chair in the hallway that night with his gun on his lap. Thankfully their bedrooms didn't connect via a bathroom, or Dave might have slept in the bathtub.

As it was, JJ had managed to distract her husband for a little while by inviting him into the shower with him. He hadn't wanted to leave the two kids alone in the house, but JJ had made it more than worth his while. Dave left the shower a _very _satisfied man.

As she rinsed off, JJ smiled when she thought of her friend's happiness; there were no two people on the planet who deserved it as much as they did, except maybe for Derek and Garcia. She wondered when they would finally tie the knot; she had no doubt that her best friend would eventually be able to tame the wild stallion that was Derek Morgan.

JJ was ripped from her thoughts as she rinsed off her chest. Her arm had nudged her breast and she froze for a moment before investigating further with her fingers. There, on the side of her left breast, just under her armpit, was a lump.

* * *

_A/N: Note from Ilovetvalot and Tonnie2001969 regarding the 2011 Profiler Choice Awards:_

_For whatever reason, ff . net disabled the Profiler's Choice Awards PM system. That means all attempts to submit ballots failed from September 11 - 16. Anyone who tried to submit a ballot during this period listed above should RESEND their submissions. I am very sorry for any inconvenience this has caused._


	3. Chapter 3

Changes-Chapter 3

* * *

JJ called the doctor first thing Monday morning and was able to get an appointment for the next day. Unfortunately for her family, the stress of finding the lump in her breast had put her in an ungodly bad mood and she frequently snapped at them for no reason. The worry kept her up at night, something which her husband had noticed and commented on, but JJ played her insomnia off as jet lag. While she couldn't explain away her mood, her family wisely tried to stay out of her way.

She felt horrible keeping what she'd found from Dave and Abby, but she didn't want to worry them until there was actually something to worry about. Besides, she knew that if Abby thought there was something really wrong with her, she would focus on that instead of getting ready for school and she didn't want to put a damper on her excitement. Plus, having seen JJ's mom suffer with and eventually die from breast cancer, she knew just the words 'breast lump' would send Abby into a tailspin and that's the last thing she wanted to do. She also knew her already protective husband would become unbearable if there was even the remote possibility that something was wrong with her and she wanted to prevent that from happening if at all possible. Besides, it had been months since she'd seen him so relaxed, what with the shootings and the stress from Suzette, and she didn't want to ruin that unless she absolutely had to.

While she didn't share what she had found with her family, the constant worries, the constant 'what if' that played in her mind nearly drove her insane. No matter how hard she tried to push it out of her head, she kept seeing her own mother as she was ravaged by the disease. She remembered the constant tiredness her mother felt, the pain, the sickness caused by her treatments, and eventually her death and it terrified her to think that she might go through the same ordeal. It was ironic; she'd survived a nearly fatal gunshot wound but she might be taken down by cancer.

It was these thoughts that were running through her head on Tuesday morning as she got dressed for her doctor's appointment. Once she was properly clothed, she made her way to the first floor and found her daughter and husband already seated at the breakfast table.

"Morning honey, sleep well?" Dave asked as she joined them at the table; he already knew she'd tossed and turned all night.

"Not really," she said as she poured herself a cup of coffee and grabbed a banana out of the fruit bowl.

"You want me to fix you something to go along with that, Jen?" He asked as he raised an eyebrow at her choice of breakfast foods. She hadn't been eating well since they'd gotten home and since she'd always been slim, the past few days of not eating were beginning to show.

"I'm fine, David," she said as she took a bite of her fruit. "I'll pick up something when I'm in the city."

"You're going to DC today?" He asked and JJ nodded. "Why?" He'd assumed she would take it easy for the next couple of days since they had just returned from Europe. Even though both she and her doctors had assured him that she was fully recovered from her shooting, a part of him still, and always would, worried about her health.

"Doctor's appointment," she told him, not wanting to elaborate. Unfortunately, that just led to more questions.

"Why are you seeing the doctor? Did something happen? Are you in pain?"

"God Dave, would you relax?" She snapped. "I have an appointment with my OB/GYN for my annual physical. Would you really like to stay with me through that?" Okay, now she felt bad because she was outright lying to the man she loved, but she had no choice.

Rossi made a face when he heard about the type of doctor's appointment. "No thanks," he said and then turned to his daughter. "What's on your agenda today, Pumpkin?"

"I'm going swimming this morning and then Jack and I are going to the carnival in Springfield early this afternoon since he has to work tonight," she told him. Springfield was a small town less than twenty miles from the cabin, but every summer a large traveling carnival set up at the edge of town for a week.

"So the membership to the aquatic center is paying off, huh?" Dave asked and Abby nodded. Dave had paid for a one month family membership to a private swim club so that Abby could keep up her swimming skills over the summer since she no longer had a high school pool she could swim in. She wasn't sure if she would go out for the swim team in college but she didn't want to fall out of shape while she decided.

"I thought you were going to get to work on your list of things that need to be done before you leave for California?" JJ snipped.

"I will, but Jack has the afternoon off today so I'll start it tomorrow," Abby said nonchalantly thinking that it wasn't a huge deal. Apparently her mother thought differently.

"Is this how the rest of your summer is going to go?" She asked loudly. "With you planning all of your time around Jack's schedule? I really don't want to have to rush through the list two days before we leave for Berkeley!"

"Jesus mom, I'll get it done! Besides, most of it is shopping and you haven't wanted to go with me this week, so it hasn't gotten done. What's the big freaking deal?"

"The big deal is that I'm sick of your procrastination! And watch your tone with me, young lady!"

Dave saw his daughter bristle at the use of the term 'young lady' and he knew if he didn't intervene, it would escalate into an all out argument.

"Abby, why don't you get changed? If you don't mind, I'll join you at the pool this morning."

"Fine," she said, still glaring at her mother. She got up from the table and headed toward her bedroom and both of her parents could hear her muttering under her breath the entire way.

"Nice Dave, thanks for your support just now," JJ said sarcastically.

"What was I supposed to do Jen? Stand by while you pick a fight with her for no reason?"

"I had valid reasons-" She began, but her husband wouldn't let her continue.

"You want to tell me what's really bothering you?" He asked. "And don't tell me it's jetlag because it's obviously something deeper than that."

"It's nothing Dave," she said, hating that he was a profiler. "I'm fine."

He just shook his head, "If you want to stick to that story, that's your prerogative, but please refrain from taking your frustrations out on our daughter."

xxxxxxxxxx

Penelope Garcia was just finishing updating some files for her boss when her desk phone rang. "Hey Jayje," she said brightly as she saw her friend's cell phone number on the caller id. "What's up?"

"Have you eaten yet?" JJ asked and Penelope could immediately tell that something was wrong.

"No, I was just about to take a late lunch; wanna meet somewhere?"

"That would be great, how about the deli down the street from the office? I'm there now."

"Okay, I'll be there in a few," Garcia said and then hung up the phone. True to her word, she walked into the deli less than ten minutes later. After putting in her order at the counter, she joined her best friend in the corner booth.

"Hi Pen, thanks for joining me," she said.

"Sure Jayje, what's up?" If she hadn't been sure something was wrong with her friend before, she was certain of it now. There were tear streaks on her face, unshed tears in her eyes and she looked downright scared.

JJ shook her head slightly and swallowed hard before she spoke. "I found a lump."

"A lump?" Garcia asked, confused.

JJ nodded, "In my left breast."

The light bulb went on in Garcia's head and she felt fear grip her heart. "Oh god, JJ!" She said as she grabbed her friend's hand. Even though she had met JJ after her mother had died, she knew about the family history of breast cancer and she was genuinely scared for her friend. "Have you made a doctor's appointment yet?"

"I just came from there," JJ said in a strangled voice. "They tried doing a needle aspiration, to see if it was simply a cyst, but the thing is a hard mass. They have to do an open biopsy."

"Shit," Pen breathed. "When?"

"The doctor was able to book me for Friday morning. Would you be able to take me there and back?" She asked. "I'll be under light anesthesia, so I won't be able to drive myself."

"I can, but won't your husband want to do that?"

JJ shook her head, "I'm not telling him or Abby about this." Seeing that her friend was about to interrupt, JJ pressed on, "Dave's been worried about my health ever since the shooting and I don't want to add to his plate and Abby's so excited about starting Berkeley in the fall and I don't want to ruin that for her. If and when there is something to tell them, I will, but for now I'd like to keep this between us, okay?"

Penelope huffed out her breath, "I don't know JJ, don't you think your husband will notice a bandage on your breast? Not to mention the fact that you'll probably be pretty woozy when I drop you off at home."

"Um, I was actually hoping I could spend Thursday and Friday night at your house as a cover. I'll tell Dave we're having a couple of girl's nights. And as for the bandage? Well, I'll think of something."

Penelope thought for a minute and then finally nodded, "Okay, but I think you're making a mistake, I think you have to tell him and Abby what's really going on."

JJ shook her head, "I hear you Pen, but I would rather do this my way."

"Fine, but once Rossi finds out about this, you'd better give me a heads up so I can go into hiding."

xxxxxxxxxx

Dave had the cabin to himself for the first time in ages and he was taking advantage of it. First he'd gone around the house and completed small repair jobs that he hadn't gotten around to fixing. Then, he fixed himself the largest sandwich known to man for lunch and he was currently sitting in front of the large HD television watching a baseball game and it was blissfully quiet; he didn't have anyone distracting him with chit chat. While he loved his wife and daughter, they could be infuriating when he was trying to watch a ballgame.

Just as his team had the bases loaded and their best batter was about to swing, the phone rang. Cursing, Dave picked it up and saw that the caller id read 'Jack Hotchner.' All thoughts of his game flew out of his head as he picked up.

"Jack, what's wrong? Is Abby alright?"

"She's fine, for now," the teen said. "Dave, you've gotta come and talk her out of it!"

"Out of what?" He asked as he jumped to his feet and began searching for his car keys.

"She's going to bungee jump!" Jack told him. "She's going to bungee jump at a freaking carnival! Like that's really safe!"

"Well tell her not to!" Dave ordered as he grabbed his keys and pulled on his shoes.

"I tried! I tried numerous times, but she just told me to quit being such a stick in the mud and to live a little. She's in line now filling out the paperwork!"

"Dammit!" Dave snarled as he dashed out of the house and jumped into his SUV. "Try to stall her, I'm on my way." He broke every land speed record on his drive to the neighboring town. He arrived at the carnival, threw his FBI placard in the windshield so he could illegally park and ran into the carnival, muttering about his hatred for the damn places his entire way in. He arrived at the bungee jumping section just in time to see his daughter and a skeevy looking carnie, in a cage being raised by a crane. Beneath them was a large, inflated cushion.

"Abigail Marie Rossi, you get down here right now!" He yelled. To his surprise, his daughter just waved to him as though she hadn't heard him. He turned to the guy operating the crane. " Bring them back down here, now!" He ordered.

"Sorry dude, but she's eighteen and she paid the money; unless she chickens out, the only way she's getting down is by jumping."

"I'm an FBI agent, _dude_," Dave said, snapping his credentials in the guy's face. "So unless you want me poking around in your background, I suggest you bring my daughter back down. Now!"

The guy shook his head again, "Whatever man, I'm clean."

It was just Dave's fucking luck to have found the only non-criminal carnie in existence. His attention was drawn from the crane operator to the cage above him, which had stopped. He watched in horror as the door opened and she stepped to the edge.

"Abby, don't you dare!" He yelled. "You have them bring you back down here right now!"

"Come on dad, it'll be fun!" She called down to him. "Where's your sense of adventure?"

"I mean it Abigail, you come down here now!"

"Okay dad!" She called out and Dave gave a sigh of relief, thinking she would have them lower the cage back to the ground. His relief turned to horror as he watched her step from the ledge and fall through the air. The cord caught her just as it appeared she was about hit the ground and it bounced her back into the air. The process was repeated a few times until she finally stilled and the carnie on the ground was able to release her from her tether.

As soon as she was free, she gave an excited whoop! And ran up to Jack and threw her arms around him.

"Oh my god Jack, that was AMAZING! The rush was like nothing I've ever felt before!" She didn't process the fact that her boyfriend wasn't hugging her back but she sure as heck felt the hand that clamped around her upper arm in a vice grip.

She turned and faced her irate father. "Hi dad!" She said cheerfully, still on her adrenaline high. "What are you doing here?"

"I was _trying _to talk you out of risking your life, but apparently that was for naught!"

"You _called _him?" Abby said accusingly to Jack, remembering his last threat as she signed the various release forms before jumping. "I can't BELIEVE you ratted me out!"

"I can't believe you decided to bungee jump at a carnival!" Jack shot back. "Do you know how many times this thing has been taken down and re-set up? How could you possibly have thought this was safe?"

Abby was about to open her mouth to respond, when her dad's grip around her arm grew tighter. "You're coming home with me, little girl."

"Actually, I still have several hours left before Jack has to leave for work," she said through clenched teeth. Her adrenaline rush had turned to anger when she'd heard her boyfriend's reaction and her father's usage of the term 'little girl.'

Dave was about to respond back, but Jack beat him to it. "Actually Abby, I think our date is finished now; god knows what else you might do if we stay. Can you drive her home, Dave?"

"Don't worry Jack, she'll definitely be coming home with me," Dave said and they split up, with Jack heading towards one parking lot and Dave towards the other, his hand still clamped around his daughter's arm in a death grip. He finally let go when they reached the car and they argued the entire way home.

They were still arguing when JJ arrived home shortly after they had. "I faced down a crazy lady with a gun less than four months ago and lived to tell about it so what's the big deal about bungee jumping? It was awesome and I'd do it again in a heartbeat!"

"Bungee jumping? Who went bungee jumping?" JJ asked as she entered the kitchen and found an angry Dave and Abby squaring off.

"Your daughter did. Apparently she thinks that since she lived through everything that happened with Suzette, that she's immortal." He should've known she would try something like this; he'd had to physically barricade her from going hang gliding in Italy and she wanted to try parachuting before they'd even left the States.

"I can't believe you went without me!" JJ said and both her husband and her daughter looked at her in total shock.

"You would've gone?" Abby asked.

JJ nodded, "Hell yes I would have!"

"What in the hell is wrong with the two of you?" Dave asked in disbelief.

"Nothing's wrong with me Dave," JJ lied, "Sometimes you just have to throw caution to the wind and live a little; life's too short," she said and then changed the subject. "I'm going to go work out, wanna join me and tell me all about your jump?" She asked Abby.

The teen nodded and they both left the cabin and began the short walk to the family gym, which was in a separate building from the house. After they left, Dave remained at the kitchen table and just slowly shook his head; had the women in his life lost their minds? He pondered the thought for a few minutes until the ringing of a phone pulled him from his thoughts.

He looked for the source of the ringing and found it in JJ's purse. "Hello?"

"May I please speak to Jennifer Rossi?" The voice at the other end said.

"She's not available right now," Dave told her, "Can I take a message?"

"Yes, this is Mary Anne from the Wild Orchard Clinic," the woman on the other end said. "Would you please let Jennifer know that we had to move her biopsy from 8:00am to 8:30am on Friday?"

"Biopsy?" Dave said in a daze.

"Yes," Mary Anne said. She was new to the healthcare field and she didn't realize she was giving out privileged information. "Could you also remind Jennifer that she shouldn't eat or drink anything after midnight and that she should wear a loose fitting bra that day as there will be some tenderness at the incision site."

"I'll make sure she gets the message," Dave said, feeling light-headed. He disconnected the call and sat back heavily in his seat. Biopsy. Loose fitting bra. It didn't take a genius to figure out that Jennifer needed something biopsied in her breast. The only question was why did she keep it from him? That was a question he planned on asking as soon as his wife returned from the gym.

* * *

_**A/N-**From ilovetvalot and tonnie2001969: The Second Annual Profiler's Choice Awards are up & running at "Chit Chat on Author's Corner" forum. The nomination ballot IS available! Please, please, please READ the rules and category descriptions before casting your noms. Time is running out...the nomination period is half over. The LAST day to submit your ballot is October 15, 2011, 11:59pm EDT. Remember, without you guys there'd be no awards! HAVE A BALL! We're SUPER EXCITED!_


	4. Chapter 4

Changes-Chapter 4

**~Thanks to everyone who voted for me in the Profiler Choice Awards...Happily Ever After won both best JJ/Rossi and the best characterization of Jennifer Jareau!**

* * *

An hour later, JJ and Abby walked back into the house and both were chatting as if nothing was wrong…as if Abby hadn't just risked her life by jumping out of a crane with only a glorified rubber band keeping her safe and as if JJ wasn't keeping a rather large secret from him. As soon as he saw how normal they were acting Dave's anger level went up another notch and he wasn't sure which of the two women were higher up on his shit list, but as soon as he saw his wife, he knew she was numero uno.

"Did you have a good workout?" He asked in a deceptively calm voice.

Both JJ and Abby were surprised to see him sitting exactly where they had left him an hour before and they could both detect the undercurrent of anger in his facial expression and voice. "It was fine, David," JJ said. "You should have joined us."

"Oh, I don't know, I learned a lot just sitting here for the last hour," he replied cryptically and then looked at his daughter. "I put an order in at China House; will you go pick it up please?" While it sounded like a request, Abby knew it wasn't and she also knew she'd both worried and pissed him off earlier, so she decided to follow his order without question, even though she really didn't want to.

"Sure dad, let me just change out of my workout clothes."

Dave shook his head, "You look fine like that," he told her as he handed her some cash.

If she hadn't been sure of his anger before, she was now and even though she felt like a traitor, she was glad his ire didn't seem to be directed at her anymore. Not wanting him to turn his focus back on her, Abby took the cash and headed for the door. As she got there, she looked back at her mom and mouthed, 'good luck.' JJ just nodded at her with wide eyes.

As soon as he heard their daughter's car leave the garage, Dave started in on his wife. "Do you wanna tell me what's going on?" He asked in the same scary calm tone of voice.

"There are a lot of things going on in my life David, so you're going to have to narrow down your question," JJ responded as she poured herself a glass of water.

"You want to play it that way? Fine!" He said, louder than before. "Your phone rang while you were working out with Abby and it was the Wild Orchard Clinic." JJ stopped mid-pour and shut her eyes for a moment; she knew her secret was out and she was going to have hell to pay with her husband. "They asked me to tell you that your biopsy has been moved from 8:00am to 8:30am on Friday and they suggested you wear a loose fitting bra because there will be tenderness at the incision site. Does that narrow it down enough for you?"

"David, I-"

"Save it Jen! Obviously something is going on with you and you didn't feel you could trust me enough to let me in on it!"

"That's not true!" She said as she sat down next to him. "Of course I trust you, hell I trust you with my LIFE! I didn't tell you because I didn't want you getting sucked into this! For Christ's sake Dave, ever since I was shot our lives have revolved around my health and recovery and I didn't want you getting pulled back into that!"

"Dammit Jen! For better or for worse and in sickness and in health! Those were the vows I agreed to! You don't get to just pick and choose which vows YOU think I should follow!" He bellowed, wanting nothing more than to shake her until her teeth rattled. "Do you really think I can't deal with it if something is wrong with you?"

"No, but you shouldn't HAVE to deal with it! I'm finally getting better, we're finally making long-term plans and then THIS happened! It's not fair, dammit!" She cried as tears sprung to her eyes.

Dave tried to get a grip on his own anger and frustration as he reached across the table and covered her hand with his. "What exactly happened, Jen?"

"I…I found a lump," she practically whispered. "In the shower, the night of Hotch and Emily's wedding…right here." She took the hand that was covering hers and guided it to her left breast. She could see the look of dawning on his face and he pulled his hand back when he saw her wince in pain.

"Jesus Jen, does it hurt?"

She shook her head, "The lump itself isn't painful, but they tried doing a needle biopsy today, so I'm a little sore. They couldn't get a sample from it, which is why I need an open biopsy on Friday."

"God," he whispered and the timeline dawned on him. "Wait a second, you've known about this for over two days and you didn't tell me?" His voice had gotten progressively louder and by the end, it was nearly loud enough to rattle the windows.

"I didn't want to worry you until I knew something for sure," she said softly, squirming much like their teenage daughter did under his penetrating gaze.

"That's not how a marriage is supposed to work Jen! I have had that type of marriage in the past and it doesn't work! You can't keep things like this from me!"

"I just…I went through this with my mom and…God, it's just so horrible! Even if the cancer doesn't kill me, I'll wish I was dead! You'll have to do even more for me, David and that's not fair to you!" The tears were streaming down her face by this point and Dave scooted his chair next to hers so he could put his arm around her.

"Whoever said life was fair, Jen?" He asked. "Besides, we don't even know if you _have_ cancer."

JJ shook her head, "With my family history, it's a good bet that I do."

"Then we'll fight it," he said firmly. "We'll get you the best doctors and the best treatments and we'll fight it with everything we've got."

"You can't just fix this by throwing money at it Dave," she told him softly as she swiped the tears from her face.

"Wanna bet?" He asked. "I have yet to run into a problem that can't be fixed with money." He sounded so sure of himself, so Dave-like that JJ gave a watery laugh.

"I'm sorry I tried keeping this from you honey," she told him. "I should have known you'd come through for me without question."

"You're damn right I will!" He said resolutely.

"And I'm glad you know," JJ continued, "But I don't want Abby knowing about this until we have some definite news to tell her; I don't want her to spend the next week worrying, I want her to get her things ready for school and I want her to have fun with Jack and all of her other friends."

Dave thought about that for a moment; his wife had a point, if they told Abby about her mom's lump, she would worry herself sick. Plus, he didn't put it past her to decline her acceptance to Berkeley and accept the one at Georgetown before the results of the biopsy were known and, as much as he wanted her to stay in the DC area, he didn't want her to do it out of fear. "Okay, but you know once she finds out, she's going to be REALLY pissed, right? Remember how well our last secret went over with her?"

Of course he was referring to them keeping his true identity a secret from her for over three months back when he first re-entered JJ's life. "I know she will, but maybe, just _maybe_ you're right and it will be good news and she'll never have to know."

"It _will_ be good news," Dave said firmly, but on the inside he was fervently praying to God that he was right.

"I hope-" JJ stopped when she heard the outside garage door open. "She's back, let's table the rest of this discussion until we're alone." Dave nodded his agreement and put on a normal expression, but inside he was in turmoil.

xxxxxxxxxx

The next couple of days went by in a blur for everyone in the Rossi household. Abby picked up on the tension in the house but she chalked it up to her mom's erratic moods over the past week and she would've said something to her dad, but he seemed like he was still a bit pissed at her for bungee jumping against his orders so she remained quiet and sought refuge with her friends and boyfriend.

"I've never been so glad to be out of my house before," she said to Jack one night. The two of them were curled up in a chaise lounge chair on the backyard deck of the empty Hotchner house. Aaron and Emily were out of town on a case and the two teens were planning to make good use of the privacy that had been afforded them. "I don't know what's up with my folks, but they're going to drive me insane. One minute they're all clingy with me and the next it's like they're trying to get me out of the house. They didn't even bat an eye about my coming over tonight, even though they have to know that your dad and Emily aren't here."

"It's the same thing here," Jack commiserated as they watched the sunset over the trees. "I thought that once they got married, dad and Emily would be too busy being newlyweds to pay much attention to me and at times they are and I'm fine with that, but then there are times where it's all about spending time with me before I leave and making sure I'm set for my trip. It's to the point where I actually LIKE it when they go out of town on a case."

"I will never understand our parents," Abby said, shaking her head slightly.

"Thankfully we don't have to," Jack told her as he wrapped his arms around her. "And I don't know about you, but I don't think we should waste this valuable time together by talking about them, do you?"

"Mmmmm," Abby moaned as he ran his fingers up the inside of her bare arm. "You're right, we should be making good use out of this time."

"The only question is, do we stay here or take this into the house?" Jack asked as he softly kissed her ear.

Abby giggled, "Seeing as your neighbors are having a barbeque in their backyard, I think we should take it inside, especially now that doing it in your bedroom doesn't creep me out." The third time the two of them had had sex, it had been in Jack's bedroom in the apartment he and Hotch had lived in for years. Since Abby had shared that room many times with him while they were growing up, it had been really weird for her to actually sleep with him in there and she'd put a kibosh on that location. Thankfully, now that they'd moved into a new house, she didn't have any weird feelings about his new bedroom and they could do it there, instead of in the backseat of her car.

"You have the best ideas," he said with a smile on his face as he stood up. Abby could see that he was already ready for the night's activity and she smiled as she got to her feet.

"You have protection, right?" She asked as they made their way into the house. Even though she was on the pill, her mother's warnings about always using two forms of birth control had been burned into her brain.

"I've got a whole box of protection up in my room," he told her as he kissed her passionately. She returned the kiss and tried not to trip as she made out with him while simultaneously going up the stairs.

"Good but don't forget that I have to be home by twelve-thirty."

Jack groaned, "Why don't you just stay the night? You're an adult now, what can your parents really do to you?"

She pulled away from him and looked at him incredulously. "You've met my dad, right? And my mom, who is THE best shot in the Bureau? I think the better question is what _can__'__t_they do to me…well, you actually. Trust me, it's better for everyone if I follow their rules until I leave for college."

"Fine," Jack grumbled as they went into his room. "But tomorrow, you're coming over earlier so we have more time."

She didn't have the heart to tell him that she was going shopping with Becca the next day and would only be able to spend an hour or two with him at the most. Instead, she just smiled against his mouth as he laid her down on the bed.


	5. Chapter 5

Changes-Chapter 5

* * *

Dave entered the cabin after an intense workout in the family gym and found his daughter sprawled out on the sofa, watching one of her low-brow movies. She must have heard his heavy breathing, because she paused the movie, turned around and flashed him a smile. "Hi dad, wanna watch _Tommy Boy _with me?"

He just scowled at her; it was Monday morning and less than three days ago the love of her life had had a part of her breast biopsied. To say his and JJ's emotions had been all over the place that weekend would have been putting it mildly; both of them had extremely short fuses as they waited for the results of her test, results which the doctor had promised by the end of business that day and, unfortunately, Abby had taken the brunt of their stress. "Is it at _all _possible for you to watch a decent movie? Do you have _any_ cinematic taste at all?"

Abby, who knew something was going on with her parents but wasn't quite sure what it was, had been fairly patient throughout the weekend…hell, all week actually, but she'd finally had enough. "You know what?" She asked rhetorically as she got up from the sofa, "I'm not sure what yours or mom's problem is, but it's getting old. I'm sorry my taste in movies isn't up to your high standards and I'm sorry that everything I say or do has been getting on your nerves lately! Please, tell me what I can do so you and mom will be in better moods!" Her voice had grown progressively louder during her tirade and at the end, she handed him the remote control and then started for the stairs. "The TV is all yours, hopefully you can find something decent to watch." She got about four steps up the staircase when her dad spoke up from his place in the great room.

"Are you sleeping with Jack?"

"What?" Abby asked in surprise as she spun around to face him. How in the hell did he know about that? Did her mother tell him? Did Uncle Aaron figure it out and tell him?

"I know you've been with him the last couple of nights and I also know that the team has been out of town for a week, which has given both of you quite a bit of alone time, so I'll ask again; are you having sex with him?"

"That is NONE of your business!" Abby said haughtily.

"It IS my business, young lady! I am NOT ready to be a grandpa yet!"

Abby remained silent as she tried to get a grip on her frustration at him; while she was eighteen years old and technically considered to be an adult, she knew that with the mood her dad was in, he wouldn't hesitate to ground her if she gave him a smart ass answer. Instead, she resumed her journey up the steps only to have it interrupted less than a second later.

"I don't want you to date Jack anymore; you to can go back to being friends, but that's it," Dave told her firmly. Once again, Abby had to bite down on her tongue to keep from responding because she really wanted to tell him to fuck off. Instead, she took a not so calming breath and faced him.

"I don't know what I did to piss you and mom off, but you both are making it _really _easy for me to leave for Berkeley in a few weeks!" With that, she stormed up the rest of the stairs and slammed her door a few seconds later.

Dave, who was still standing at the bottom of the steps, began to feel bad for snapping at his daughter the way he had. He knew she was a good kid and, while he didn't want to think about her being intimate with a guy, he knew he had over reacted and he hadn't wanted to do that. He also knew that Abby's comment about Berkeley was apt; the stress of waiting for the results of JJ's biopsy had been weighing on the two of them and, as a result, neither of them was sleeping well and it was making them snappy with each other and their daughter. The fear of a positive result had also shortened their fuses considerably and they had both taken out on Abby.

With a sigh, Dave started up the steps; he knew he owed his daughter an apology and he would swallow his pride and deliver it. Once at the top of the steps, he went down the hallway and knocked on her door. "Can I come in, Abby?" He asked through wooden barrier.

Abby, who was trying to get a handle on her emotions, sighed; she really hoped he hadn't followed her up to her room to continue their argument because she didn't know how much longer she would be able to keep quiet. "Fine," she said with a sigh as he opened the door.

"Sorry for snapping at you downstairs, Pumpkin," Dave said as he entered her room. "You didn't do anything to make your mom and I mad, we just a have a few things going on that are stressing us out and, as a result, our tempers are a little short."

"A little?" Abby snorted. "You've been snapping at the tiniest things while mom runs around here like she has a split personality! Half of the time I don't know whether she's going to hug me or scream at me!"

"Technically it's called multiple personalities," he corrected her as he sat down on her desk chair, "And we haven't been that bad."

"Yes you have, but whatever, I understand being stressed out. What's going on that has both of you so stressed out? Should I be worried?"

"It's nothing you need to concern yourself about," Dave lied smoothly. "You just focus on what you have to do to get ready for college and leave the worrying up to your mom and me."

"I'm not a little kid anymore dad, you can tell me what's going on," Abby told him testily; when would her parents realize that she no longer five years old?

"I know that, but contrary to popular belief, you _don't _need to know everything that goes on between your mother and I," her dad responded back, just as pissily.

"Fine! Is that all you came up here for? To remind me that I'm still just some dumb little kid?" She asked as she got off of her bed. "If so, mission accomplished!"

"Dammit Abby-" Dave growled, but the teen interrupted him.

"If you don't mind, I'm going to jump in the shower so I can meet Becca for lunch in the city; that is, of course, unless you think I'm too young to do _that _on my own."

"Keep talking to me like that, and you won't be leaving this house at all," he warned as he got up from the chair and left her room. Once he was in the hallway, he let out a sigh; if his daughter ever learned what they had been keeping from her, this reaction of hers would be a fond memory.

xxxxxxxxxx

An hour later, Dave made a mad dash for the phone as it rang a fifth time. He and JJ had been sitting out on the porch, enjoying the unseasonably cool weather and they had forgotten to bring the cordless phone outside with them. Knowing it could be JJ's doctor with her biopsy results, Dave had run inside to answer it before the machine picked up.

"Hello?" He said breathlessly after he'd finally found the damned thing. Someday his daughter would learn to put it back on the charger, instead of just leaving it wherever she happened to be.

"You have reached 555-" he heard his own voice drone back at him.

"Damn!" He exclaimed as he heard the answering machine greeting. "Whoever this is, I'm here, just wait a second for the message to stop playing." By this time JJ had also re-entered the cabin and she was hanging on him to hear who it was who was calling.

The answering machine greeting finally ended. "Dave? This is Steve Arlen, I have Jennifer's biopsy results."

"Hang on doc, I'm going to put you on speaker phone." As he said the words, he noticed that his wife had turned an unnatural shade of pale. "Deep breaths, Jen," he ordered as he held the phone away from them. "No matter what the doctor says, we'll get through this." JJ took a deep breath and nodded as he pushed the speaker button.

"Are you there, Dr. Arlen?" JJ asked.

"I am," the doctor affirmed. "And, as I told your husband, I have your biopsy results-"

"Is it cancer?" JJ interrupted, not sure if she wanted to hear the answer.

"It isn't cancer," Dr. Arlen told her. "The biopsy showed that it was a mass of old scar tissue. Were you ever hit fairly hard there?"

"I…I've taken so many hits in my job and in my training…I'm not sure…" JJ said, her own words barely registering in her mind. The only thing she could focus on were the doctor's words that it wasn't cancer, that she wasn't going to die a painful death like her mother had, that she wasn't going to be sick for months on end from the effects of chemo and radiation, that she would be able to watch their daughter grow up and hopefully have another child with David. She was going to live!

"You're sure it's not cancer?" She asked, her voice barely above a whisper. Part of her was afraid that the doctor would say, 'oops, you're right, it _is_ cancer.'

"I am 100% sure it is NOT cancer, Jennifer; I was fairly confident when I removed the mass that it wasn't malignant and the lab confirmed it." After that, the doctor said some other things but JJ couldn't focus on his words as a sense of utter relief washed over her. She heard Dave respond back to the doctor and then he finally hung up the phone.

"I'm not sick," JJ whispered, still unable to believe it; with her family's history of breast cancer, she was sure the lump was malignant.

"No you're not," Dave said as a huge smile spread across his face. He gently wrapped his arms around her and she practically fell into them.

"I was so sure it was cancer," she said through her tears of relief. "I was so sure that all of our plans…all of our worlds were about to be turned upside down."

"Nothing is going to be turned upside down Jen," he murmured. "Even if you had been sick, we would've gotten through it."

"But now we don't have to," she said with a smile on her face as she wiped away her tears. "Now we can actually make some long-term plans!"

"Well, I don't know about you, but I've already made some short-term plans, and one of those includes taking you to bed while our daughter is still out of the house."

"That, David Rossi, sounds like a wonderful idea," JJ said happily as her husband swung her up into his arms and started towards the stairs.

xxxxxxxxxx

Later that afternoon, Abby sailed into the house with a smile on her face; nothing cheered her up more than spending time with her best friend, especially with the way her parents had been acting lately. As she stepped through the garage door and into the kitchen, she saw them sitting outside on the deck and she hoped they were in better moods than they had been all week, but she knew that was probably asking for a miracle. As she reached for a glass from the cabinet, she noticed that the answering machine was blinking with a message, so she pushed play and listened as she grabbed the pitcher of filtered water from the refrigerator. She heard her dad answer the phone and then swear as the greeting played over his voice. She was just about to skip the message, since her dad had obviously taken the call and the machine had recorded it, when she heard the speaker on the other end identify themselves as her mother's doctor.

She listened in horror as her parents and the doctor discussed a mass that was found in her mother's breast and then she exhaled in relief when she heard it was benign. Once the conversation had finished, Abby remained standing near the phone as she processed everything she had heard. Her mother had thought she had cancer…she'd had minor surgery…AND NO ONE HAD TOLD HER! What the fuck was wrong with her parents? How could they have kept that from her? How DARE they keep something that would have affected the ENTIRE family from her? Dammit, she felt like she was fifteen again and just learning the truth about her father!

"There you are," she heard her mother's cheery voice say behind her. "I thought I heard you come home. Why don't you come out and join…Abby, what's wrong?" She asked, her voice changing to concern when Abby finally turned around to face her.

"You lied to me," Abby practically whispered, but JJ could tell she was furious. Her body language was tense, her hands were curled into tight fists and she looked as though she could shoot fire from her eyes.

"What-" JJ tried asking, but the glare from her daughter shut her up.

"You thought you were sick! You had a goddamn biopsy! You thought you had fucking CANCER and you didn't tell me!"

"How did you find out about it?" JJ asked, closing her eyes. Up until that point, a small part of Abby had hoped that her mother would look shocked or surprised. Up until that point, Abby may have been able to convince herself that she had imagined the recorded telephone conversation. If her mother, the one person she trusted most in the world, had told her she was mistaken then Abby would have believed her but she didn't do any of that; instead she looked resigned and more than a bit guilty.

"Dad didn't get to the call in time and the answering machine recorded it," Abby told her angrily. "Lemme tell you, it was a _great_ way to find out that you thought you were DYING!"

"I never thought I was going to die," JJ lied calmly, hoping that by keeping her calm, Abby might relax a little.

"Bullshit!" Her daughter spat, "I heard your voice on the phone; you were convinced you had cancer and you kept it from me!"

"Hey, what's going on in here?" Dave asked as he stepped through the patio door. "I think they can hear both of you at the neighbor's house." Their closest neighbor lived a mile away from them and it was always the running family joke, except no one laughed this time.

"Abby found out about my recent health scare," JJ told him calmly, although inside she was anything but. She knew she should have told Abby about it, but she honestly hadn't wanted her to worry. She was leaving for college in a few weeks and she didn't want to dampen that excitement.

"Shit," was all that Dave said, knowing their daughter was about to say enough for both of them.

"You're as much of a liar as she is!" Abby shouted at her dad, jerking her thumb towards her mother. "Do either of you know how to tell the truth? I asked you, I ASKED YOU if there was anything I should be worried about and you looked me in the eye and said NO! I would say this was a pretty big fucking thing to be worried about, dad!"

"Hey, watch your language," Dave said at the same his wife said, "Technically I didn't lie to you, I just didn't tell you everything."

"Really?" Abby said incredulously. "How many times have you told me that a lie of omission is still a lie? How many times have I been grounded for not telling you the ENTIRE truth? How many times have you practically FORCED me to tell you about everything that goes on in my life? You really want to stand there and tell me that you didn't lie to me? Because if that's the case, then my days of telling you about my life are THROUGH!"

"Watch your tone," Dave warned from behind JJ; there was only so much disrespect towards his wife that he would put up with. Did Abby have a right to be upset? Sure, but she needed to express herself within reason.

Abby glared at Dave while she attempted to get her anger under control. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't want you re-thinking your decision to attend UC Berkeley," JJ told her. "You've been so excited about going and I didn't want you suddenly changing to a local school if there was the possibility I was sick."

"Would you have told me if the biopsy had come up positive for breast cancer?" Abby asked, "Or would you have let me go off to California thinking everything was alright back here?"

"I honestly don't know," JJ said softly.

Shaking her head, Abby thought of a million things she wanted to shout at both of her parents, but she knew that would just get her into trouble, so she grabbed her car keys off of the counter and headed for the garage door.

"Where are you going?" Dave asked.

Abby shook her head, "Away from here," she told him in a voice that left no room for argument. "I can't be near either of you right now…I've got to get things straightened out in my head before I say something I'll really regret. _Don't _follow me!" With that, she walked through the door and a minute later, Dave and JJ heard her car start and then they heard the sound of the motor grow faint as she drove away from the cabin.

"That went well," JJ said sarcastically, right before she broke down into tears.


	6. Chapter 6

Changes-Chapter 6

**~Hello all! As one of the new moderators on the CCOAC forum, I've posted the 2012 Valentine's Day challenge! Since ff .net has been having issues with the forums for the past few days, feel free to send me a PM if you want to sign up as I don't think people can post to the forums right now. **

* * *

"I honestly thought I was doing the right thing," JJ said tearfully as her husband wrapped his arms around her. "She's been through so much over the past six months and I didn't want to worry her...I didn't want her changing her plans because of me."

"I know that JJ, that's why I backed your decision. Whether or not our daughter wants to believe it, she _is_ still a kid, at least to us, and we _are _going to protect her from things every once in a while," Dave said as his wife cried silently into his chest. "Don't worry about it honey, she'll get over it."

JJ shook her head against him. "I'm not so sure about that Dave," she choked out. "She probably feels like she did when she was fifteen and just learning about you for the first time. I promised her after that, that I wouldn't keep any big secrets from her again and what did I do? I didn't tell her about a possible life threatening illness I was facing, _and _I admitted to her that I may not have told her about it if the tests had come up positive for cancer. I'm a horrible mother."

"_No_ you're _not_, you're a mother who did what was best for her daughter and if I hadn't been 100% sure of that, I never would have gone along with it. What good would it have done to have her worrying along with us?" He asked rhetorically. "If we had told her, it would've stressed her out and she's already got enough going on trying to get ready to move across the country. I understand why she's pissed, but we did what was best for her."

"I just hope she understands that when she's finally ready to talk to us," JJ said forlornly, wondering if her daughter would ever talk to them again.

"She will," he told her reassuringly. "Speaking of which, I'm gonna call her; I don't want her driving in her current state of mind."

"No Dave, just let her go, she needs time away from us to cool off and process the situation; if you call her right now you'll just make her angrier and she'll be even more dangerous behind the wheel."

He sighed, "You have a point, but if she isn't home by dinnertime I'll give her a call. Agreed?"

JJ nodded sadly, "Agreed."

xxxxxxxxxx

Abby, who was angrier than she could ever remember being, also knew that she was in no condition to drive and that fact was reaffirmed for her when she looked at her speedometer and realized she was driving close to 80 miles per hour, 25 miles per hour faster than the posted speed limit. Knowing she couldn't turn around and go home, she pulled into the parking lot of the nearest Metro station and parked her car. Luck was with her as the train had just arrived at the station when she hit the platform below and she rode it into the city, already knowing what her final destination would be.

Half an hour later, she pushed the door open to a familiar place. She inhaled slowly through her nose and smelled the comforting scent of coffee. She then heard the soothing sounds of acoustic music coming from the musician's corner and she felt herself relax a little bit. She was angry beyond belief at her parents for keeping such an important secret from her and she needed time to get her head around the fact that they had lied to her again. As she accepted her vanilla latte from the barista across the counter, she felt like she had been transported back in time three years to the night when she'd learned the truth about her father's identity.

While that had been a huge betrayal that had rocked her foundation of trust with her mother, this latest betrayal was a thousand times worse. First, she was a fucking adult now, so she should be told about these things. Second, after all they had gone through the past spring, she really thought that her parents had begun to see her as more of an equal but apparently not, apparently they still saw her as a child who needed to be protected from the big, bad world. Third, did they really think she couldn't handle it? Sure, she knew she still had some issues from the ordeal they went through with Will and Suzette, but did they really think she was so screwed up that she couldn't handle the idea of her mom being sick? Did they think she was really _that _emotionally fragile? Add to that the way they had acted toward her the past week, with the near bi-polar emotional fluxes and the short fuses and…well, it sucked…it sucked big time.

She sat at the small table for nearly two hours, her own emotions a swirling cyclone inside of her and she missed it when a familiar face walked into the coffee shop but, thankfully for her, he didn't miss her.

Leroy Jethro Gibbs saw Abby sitting at her table in a world of her own and, from the look on her face and the faint tear tracks on her cheeks, it was not a happy world. While he didn't see the teen as much as he liked, he'd grown fond of her while she'd stayed with him right before her parents had been shot and that fondness had grown when he'd seen the strength she'd shown in getting past the horrific events she'd witnessed on that fateful night in the study with Suzette. Also, the Rossi family had made sure to invite him to more dinners and family events since then and he would bet money that a lot of that was Abby's influence. Plus, she and her mom were just generally likable and he'd seen the happiness they'd brought to his friend so they would always have a special place in his heart.

With a sigh, he ordered a large black coffee for himself and made his way over to her table. She didn't look up at him and that confirmed that something was definitely on her mind. After standing near her for a minute, he sat down in the chair opposite from her and that finally got her attention.

"Oh!" She exclaimed, startled by the intrusion into her own little world. "Gibbs! What are you doing here?" How in the HELL had her parents tracked her already? She always wondered if they had secretly implanted a homing device on her and this just confirmed her suspicions. How else would the NCIS agent have found her? Her car was sitting in the Metro parking lot, she hadn't used her debit card and she'd kept her cell phone off. She was just about to share her suspicions with the older man when he spoke.

"Your dad told me about this place and now I'm addicted," he told her. "They have some of the best coffee I've ever tasted and their baked goods are worth dying of a heart attack from all of the butter and sugar they use."

Abby gave him a small smile, "I used to work here, so I know what you mean," she told him.

"So what's wrong, Abs?" He asked as he took a long draw from his mug. Abby, who hadn't planned on spilling her guts to the older man, found the whole sordid story spilling from her mouth, starting with her parents behavior the past week until when she left the house that afternoon. Tears ran down her face when she was finished.

"So what are you going to do now?" Gibbs asked neutrally. He could see both sides of the situation; on the one hand Dave and JJ were just looking out for their daughter's well being, much like he would if it had been Kelly in this situation. On the other hand, Abby deserved to know what was going on in her family and he could see why she saw it as a betrayal that they kept it from her. There was no _way_ he was going to take sides in what was clearly a family affair, but he also didn't want the kid doing something stupid.

Abby shrugged as she stared into her empty latte mug. "I don't know; I was sitting here trying to figure out where I'm going to stay tonight because I _don't _want to be by my parents. I know they'll try to force me to talk to them and I don't want to do that right now…if I do that, I know I'll say something that I'll regret."

"So stay at my place," Gibbs suggested as he finished his coffee.

"No, that's okay, I don't want to put you out or anything Gibbs, I'll just crash at Jack's tonight."

"First, spending the night with your boyfriend is not an option. Second, you're not any bother to have around and you definitely will _not _be putting me out by staying with me," he reassured her.

Abby thought about it for a minute; as livid as she was with her parents, she didn't want to completely throw gasoline onto an already raging inferno by staying with Jack. Plus, since Gibbs was a pretty solitary person, she was fairly certain he wouldn't force her to talk about things and she might actually get some thinking done if she stayed at his place since when she and Jack got together, their activities tended to rob her of her powers to think about anything. "Okay," she finally said. "You're sure you don't mind?"

"Positive," Gibbs said, standing up.

Abby followed his lead and she soon found herself speeding through DC in his official NCIS sedan. After a quick stop at the grocery store, they pulled into his driveway and before she knew it, she was stepping through his front door.

"Do you want to call your parents, or do you want me to?"

"Why do we have to call them at all?" She asked, somewhat petulantly. "I'm eighteen and-"

"And your parents are already worried about you," he interrupted. "I'm not going to make them wonder about your safety and well-being all night."

"Fine," Abby said with a sigh. "Can you call them? I don't think I can be civil to either one of them right now."

"No problem Abs," he told her. "You remember where everything is from your last stay?"

She nodded, "While you call them, I'll start dinner." With that, she made her way into the kitchen with the grocery bags, while Gibbs headed for the basement, dialing his cell phone as he walked.

"Rossi," the voice on the other end said gruffly after one ring.

"Lose something Dave?" Gibbs asked wryly.

"Jethro, is that you?" Dave asked, wondering why his nearly mute friend had chosen that exact moment to call. "I can't talk right now Gibbs, Abby's not happy with us and she stormed out a few hours ago and we haven't heard from her since."

"That's what I'm calling about; she's with me." Gibbs heard the other man give a large sigh of relief.

"Thank God," he breathed, "Is she okay? She drove out of here like a bat out of hell and in her emotional state-"

"She's fine," Gibbs interrupted. "Your daughter has a good head on her shoulders; she realized she was in no shape to drive so she caught the nearest Metro into town. Her car is parked at the station. You realize you and JJ really screwed up, right?"

"She told you what happened?"

Gibbs nodded as he blew the sawdust out of an empty mason jar and then grabbed his trusty bottle of bourbon. "Yup and she is _not_ happy with either one of you." He poured himself a healthy amount of the liquid and took a large sip of it.

"We did what we had to," Dave said softly. "She's been through enough as it is and we didn't want to pile this worry on top of her."

"_I_ understand that, but _she _doesn't."

"I know," Dave said with a sigh. "I'll come get her."

"Don't bother, she wants to crash here for tonight and since she's cooking an amazing chicken dish, I'm gonna let her."

"Jethro," Dave began but the NCIS agent didn't let him get any farther.

"Look Dave, she needs to work through some things in her mind and, no offense, but you're not the most patient guy. If she goes back to your cabin, it's just going to lead to a fight that none of you want to have. Let her have a little time to think about things and simmer down before you drag her back home."

"Okay," Dave finally agreed. "It's better than her staying at Jack's."

"Damn right it is," Gibbs agreed forcefully.

xxxxxxxxxx

That night, after eating one of the best meals he'd ever had, Gibbs returned to the basement, where he continued to work on his newest boat. After a while, a freshly showered Abby joined him, wearing one of his large USMC t-shirts. The kid was good company; she didn't talk too much but when she did, she asked intelligent questions about his boat and NCIS. He'd like to think that if his daughter had lived, she would be a lot like Abby. In return, he asked her about her life and avoided discussing the current situation with her parents. In the end, it was a fairly relaxing night for both of them.

The next morning after his shower, he came down to the kitchen and found that, while Abby was still asleep, she'd set the timer for the coffeepot. He poured himself a large mug and found the coffee tasted a lot like the wonderful brew from Java Junction. He quickly finished his first cup and poured the rest into a thermos so he could take it to work. After that, he scribbled a quick note and left it for her before leaving for the Navy Yard.

After a long day of working on a particularly heinous case, Gibbs arrived home to find a note on his kitchen table. It was from Abby and in it she thanked him for his hospitality. She also thanked him for providing her with a place to think and then she told him she was returning to the cabin. With a smile, he set the note down and didn't think any more about it, which was why he was surprised to receive a call from Dave two days later.

When his cell phone rang at work, he didn't bother checking the caller ID, he just snapped it open and barked, "Gibbs."

"This is crazy, Jethro," Dave said, without bothering to greet the man. "It's been nearly three days and we haven't heard from her. I don't care if she needs more time to think, I'm coming to get her tonight."

"What are you talking about Dave?" Gibbs asked, confused by the conversation.

"I'm talking about Abby," Dave snapped. "Who did you _think_ I was talking about? I haven't seen or heard from my daughter in days and it's gone on long enough."

"Dave, Abby left me a note after that first night saying she was going back to the cabin. I haven't seen her in two days."

"What?" Dave asked, his annoyance turning to panic. "She hasn't been back here since she stormed out of the cabin three days ago. If she's not with you, then where the hell is she?"


	7. Chapter 7

Changes-Chapter 7

_**~Don't forget to sign up for the 2012 Valentine's Day Challenge at the CCOAC forum. Due to technical issues, you won't be able to sign up directly on the board so just send me a PM to sign up.**_

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As soon as she heard her husband's exclamation, JJ grabbed her cell phone and began dialing. First she called Abby's best friend Becca who claimed not to have heard from her daughter in the past few days. JJ believed her, so her next call was to Jack. Like Becca, Jack claimed not to know where Abby was but told JJ he'd talked to her on the afternoon that she left. According to him, she'd also told him that she was returning to the cabin. Since he had been working non-stop for the past few days, he wasn't surprised that he hadn't heard from her and he promised her he'd call if she contacted him. Since Marie was still in Italy, JJ didn't bother calling her and instead tried a few of Abby's other friends from school and none of them knew where she was. By the time she finished her last call, the worry had set in and she was close to panic.

Dave finished his conversation with Gibbs at about the same time, and once both phones had been snapped shut, the two of them just stared at each other for a moment.

"Where is she Dave?" JJ said in a wavering voice. "She's never done this before, I've never not known where she is."

"She'd better damn well not be doing this now!" He said loudly. It was one thing to be pissed at them, but to deliberately make them worry? To disappear without a word to anyone? When they found her, he was sure they would have a very loud discussion about what she'd done. "I get that she's angry with us, but she knows we need to know where she is."

"But what if she's hurt? What if she's been taken?" JJ voiced every parent's worst fears and it got both of them moving again. With a snap of her wrist, JJ opened her laptop and motioned Dave to join her in front of it.

"The all-knowing computer goddess at your service," Garcia chirped as she appeared on the screen in front of them. "How can I help the two of you today?" Dave and JJ could see that she was typing frantically on another computer and she looked stressed.

"Pen, we had an argument with Abby; she found out about my breast cancer scare and she left and we haven't heard from her in days. Can you help us find her?" JJ asked, trying to keep calm.

"WHAT? Days? And you're just calling me NOW?" The tech shrieked.

"We thought she was staying with Gibbs," JJ told her as her typing speed went up another notch. "It turns out she just stayed with him for one night before going off the grid."

"You've got that right," the tech analyst said as she stared at her screens. "From what I can tell, her car is in your garage?"

Dave nodded, "She left it at a Metro station and we picked it up a few nights ago."

"So I'm not going to be able to track her that way," Pen muttered as she stared at her screens even more. "Sorry loves; her cell phone is off and she hasn't used her debit card in the last few days. Did you try her friends?"

"Would we be calling you if we hadn't tried them?" Dave snapped loudly. "Dammit Penelope, you've got to have more ways to track her than that!"

JJ rarely saw her friend pissed off, but she could tell Garcia was trying to hold back her anger. "With all due respect _sir_," she practically snarled, "you're NOT the only one I'm doing work for today. The team is trying to close in on an unsub and they have me and my computers running ragged-"

"Do I _look_ like I care?" Dave yelled. "Just fucking find my daughter!"

A look came over Penelope's face that neither Dave nor JJ had ever seen before and it was at that moment both of them realized that underneath her peppy and sweet demeanor, she could be as lethal and cutthroat as any member of the team. "The _only_ reason I'm not obliterating your electronic empire right now," she said in a deceptively calm voice, "is because I know you are worried about your daughter."

"Garcia," Dave started in a much nicer tone of voice, but she would have none of it.

"This is NOT my fault, sir! I _told _JJ I thought she was nuts for not telling Abby, but did you listen to me, Cupcake?" She asked turning her attention to JJ. "No, you didn't and now your daughter is missing." Her attention was pulled away from them for a moment. "Is your mother still in Italy?" She asked Dave through clenched teeth.

"Yeah," he responded, wondering if Abby had actually gotten on a flight to re-join her.

"Well, I can tell you that the electricity usage at your mother's townhouse has been pretty high during the past week; much higher than it has been all summer."

"Thank God," Dave said in relief. "Garcia, I'm sorry-"

"Just go get your daughter, Agent Rossi," the still pissed off technical analyst said snippily. "You and I will talk in a few days." With that, she disconnected the call and left them looking at a blank screen.

"You realize that one of the most dangerous people on the planet now has a grudge against you, right?" JJ asked as he grabbed the car keys off of the table near the front door.

"We'll just add her to the long list," Dave replied as they left the house and got into the car. Within minutes they were speeding down the highway, gearing up for a confrontation with their daughter.

"You know you can't just start yelling at her, right?" JJ asked. "I know you're pissed at what she did, but she's rightfully pissed at us as well and I don't want this to escalate into an all-out war."

"But-" Dave tried, but JJ stopped him.

"But nothing. She said she needed some time to herself and that's what she got. Do I like the fact that she didn't check in with us, or that she didn't let anyone know where she was going? No, but we're just going to have to get over it. Besides, once we're past this, I'm sure Gibbs is going to have plenty to say to her about lying to him," JJ told him with a small smile. "Hopefully she's had enough time to cool down because when we get there, I want to have a calm and cool discussion with her. Capice?"

"Fine," he said petulantly. "I guess you have a point." He didn't like it, but he knew his wife was right.

The rest of the drive was quiet, save for the radio playing in the background, and since it was the middle of the day, they made good timing into the city. Soon they were letting themselves into Marie's townhouse.

As they stepped through the front door, they heard the shower running and, despite his promise to his wife, all of Dave's worry and anger rose to the surface and he stomped up the stairs just as the water turned off.

He strode quickly down the hallway, as JJ tried to keep up, and pounded on the door. "I know you're in there, young lady, so hurry up and get dressed and then get out here so we can talk!"

"Great Dave," his wife said with a roll of her eyes. "You lasted what? All of thirty seconds before you issued your first order?"

He was about to respond, when the door opened to reveal a towel clad figure. "Wow, I feel like I'm fifteen years old again."

"Rachelle?" Dave asked incredulously as he laid his eyes on his youngest sister for the first time in months. "What are you doing here?" The last he'd heard, she was doing humanitarian work in Somalia.

The younger woman shrugged, "My group received numerous threats from the local government so we had to pull out in a hurry. I'm stuck at the corporate office until my next assignment and ma said I could crash here. Thanks for the nice greeting, by the way," she said as she brushed by him and into her childhood bedroom. A minute later, she came out again, this time wearing jeans and a tank top.

"I'm sorry," he said, pulling her into a hug. "I was expecting…no, I was _hoping_ Abby was here." He released her and JJ moved to hug her next.

"She _was _here, but only so she could pack some of the clothes she keeps here," Rachelle said, once she was done hugging her sister-in-law. "And that was a few days ago. Boy, the two of you really know how to piss of a teenager, don't you? I always knew _you_ had that special talent, Davie, but I thought JJ would keep it in check."

"You've seen her?" JJ asked, ignoring Rachelle's comment. "Do you know where she is."

The younger woman nodded, "I do."

"Well, where in the hell is she?" Her brother asked in an exasperated tone of voice. Being the youngest, she'd always had a special place in his heart but she was also the one who could get under his skin the easiest.

Rachelle thought for a moment and then shook her head, "Sorry, I promised I'd give her five days before I came and got her. She has her cell phone and she knows she can call me earlier than that if she wants to."

"God dammit Rach, tell me where my daughter is and tell me now!" Dave roared and for once, JJ didn't try to calm him down; this was their daughter they were talking about and she wanted to know where she was!

"Abby needs time to think without you pressuring to talk about things! Do you really think you could leave her alone if she came home now? She feels betrayed and confused by what the two of you did and she needs time to process it."

"I get that Rach, but I still need to know where she is, for my own piece of mind. After all we've been through, I need to know she's okay." Dave was as close to begging as Rachelle had ever heard him and seeing both him and JJ so frantic made her waver in her decision to stay quiet. She was mentally debating whether or not to betray her niece, when her brother's cell phone rang.

"Rossi," he snapped.

"Mr. Rossi?" The voice at the other end of the line asked. "This is Mitch McAllister." Mitch McAllister owned the small general store near his other cabin; his ramshackle, writing/hunting cabin. It was only about two miles away from the store and he frequently hiked there when he needed supplies. Mitch knew that his cabin didn't have a phone line, so years ago Dave had given him his cell phone number in case of emergencies.

"What can I do for you, Mitch?" He asked, confused.

"Your daughter was getting groceries this morning and she left her wallet here. I don't know how long you folks will be staying in the area and I didn't want her going back to the city without it."

Letting out a long sigh of relief, Dave said, "Thanks Mitch, I'll be by to pick it up in a little while." With that, he disconnected the call and faced his wife. "She's at the other cabin."

JJ exhaled as well and said, "Thank God." Both of them moved to leave when Rachelle's voice stopped them.

"I'm really sorry I couldn't tell you guys," she said apologetically.

"No Rachelle, you _chose_ not to tell us and, believe me, you and I will be having a _long _conversation about loyalties when I get back."

Rachelle sighed and shook her head slightly. "Looking forward to that, big brother."

xxxxxxxxxx

Abby returned from her hike to the general store, put the groceries away in the small kitchen and then went outside. The cabin itself was kind of a hole; there were four walls, a bathroom and not much else. Thank God her dad had taught her how to start the generator so she could have electricity or else she probably would've shacked up with Jack for the past few days, even if it would have made her parents ballistic when they found out.

She lay out in the sun for a little while in one of the rickety, folding chaise lounge chairs her father kept there but then she got hungry, so she fixed herself a light lunch. After that, she became antsy and decided to go for a run in the woods around the cabin. While there weren't trails cut into the woods like there were at the nicer cabin…the 'home' cabin, she was familiar with the area and wasn't worried about getting lost. She stayed in the woods for over an hour before returning to her temporary home and as she approached it, she saw the familiar SUV parked next to it. She gave a slight groan of disappointment as she entered the cabin and found her parents waiting for her.

"So you found me," she said unhappily. "How long did it take for Aunt Rachelle to give me up? Three minutes? Four?"

"Your aunt wouldn't tell us where you were," Dave said, trying to keep a lid on his anger as he tossed her wallet to her. "Mitch called me when he saw that you'd left that at the store."

Abby shook her head as she caught her wallet; she'd thought of everything and she was tripped up by her stupid wallet and the owner of the general store. Freaking perfect!

"It's time to come home, Abby," JJ said softly. "I understand that you're angry with us, but you can't avoid us for the rest of your life; eventually you'll have to talk to us about this. Besides, we're supposed to get bad storms tonight and I doubt this place is water tight."

Abby thought for a moment. She could push the issue and risk pissing her parents off, not that her dad didn't already look thoroughly annoyed with her, or she could go home and live a little more comfortably. Sure, she didn't really want to talk to them, but her mom had a point. She could also smell the rain in the air and she really didn't want to see firsthand if her mom was right about the cabin's ability to keep her dry.

"You're right," she finally said. "But I still need a little more time to get things straight in my head before I talk to you guys, okay?"

"Okay," JJ said before her husband could jump in. Unlike him, she knew Rome wasn't built in a day and she knew making up with their daughter needed to be done in baby steps. Heck, she'd expected much more of a fight with her over going home, so if she needed a little more time to think, she'd give it to her.

She watched as the teen quickly gathered up her thing and then she gently led her out the door while Dave locked up. While Abby didn't look too happy, soon she would be back home where she belonged and at that moment, JJ knew that was all she could ask of her.


	8. Chapter 8

Changes-Chapter 8

**~I posted the 2012 Valentine's Day Challenge to the forum last weekend, but they've been down since then (grrr!) and authors are unable to sign up. Because of that, I created a Facebook group for the challenge. You can sign up there or you can PM me with your username and character. The facebook page can be found here (remove the spaces): www. facebook. com/groups/283615431692633/**

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The ride back to the nicer cabin, the 'home' cabin, was largely silent. Dave was still trying to get a grip on the anger he felt towards his daughter. He knew she had been pissed when she left home a few days ago, but he never thought she would disappear without a word to either him or JJ. Eighteen years old or not, she knew better, especially with the line of work he and his wife were in, and she had to know they would worry about her. With a slight shake of his head, he wondered if they would still be in the dark as to where she was if Mitch hadn't called.

While JJ shared in her husband's frustration, she knew that Abby's anger towards them was well-deserved; she'd kept a large secret from her daughter, one that would have affected her life if the test results had turned out differently, and after the fiasco with finding out Dave was her father three years ago, JJ had promised to never do that again and she'd broken that promise. She knew her intentions had been for the best, but all Abby saw was yet another betrayal from her…another breech in the trust she felt towards her. She wanted to give Abby all of the time in the world to get past this but, because she was going off to college in less than a month, time was of the essence and because of that, and because she knew her husband wouldn't let things go for much longer, she knew everything would probably come to a head that night. The only thing she could try to do was to bring it up gently before Abby and Dave decided to go head to head in an argument.

A few minutes later, they walked through the front door of the cabin. Without a backwards glance at her parents, Abby went up the stairs and into her bedroom. She didn't fully believe they would give her time to think if she stayed near them, so she decided that distance from them would help the current situation. Once she hit her bedroom, she realized how tired she was. Gibbs' place had been…nice, but it wasn't home and her dad's hunting cabin left a lot to be desired. The mattress was hard as a rock and at one point in the previous night, she'd almost tried sleeping on the floor, figuring it had to be more comfortable. As she lay down on her bed, she also realized that it was nice to feel safe again. While she hadn't felt as exposed as she had when Suzette had been gunning for them, she'd been a bit on edge in the woods all by herself. As angry as she was with her parents, she knew they provided a certain type of security for her that she couldn't find anywhere else. The last waking thought she had was about how nice her shower would feel when she woke up.

Two hours later, Abby awoke to a loud rumble of thunder. As she lay in bed, she luxuriated in the first real sleep she'd gotten in days. She had worked with her therapist, Dr. Kendall, for long enough to know that stress was a major trigger for her nightmares and she'd awoken screaming each the past three nights. She had been mortified when she'd awakened to Gibbs holding her because of her loud shrieks and her flailing about, but the worst had been the nightmares at the cabin when she had awakened alone and terrified. Each night it had taken her awhile to convince herself that she was safe, that Suzette wasn't holding a gun to her head, and both nights she'd almost given into the temptation to call her parents.

Her parents. With a sigh, Abby got up from her bed and padded into her bathroom where she splashed some water onto her face. She knew they wouldn't let her go much longer without talking to them and she still wasn't sure she wanted to do that. Sure, she knew she'd have to eventually but she knew when that time arrived, it would be a very loud discussion.

With that thought, she exited both her bathroom and bedroom and made her way down to the first floor. As she hit the bottom step, she could see that her dad was in the study and her mom was reading in the great room, but she didn't say a word to either one of them. Instead, she walked into the kitchen, put her iPod onto the docking station and began assembling the ingredients for her famous chicken parmesan. While some people found cooking to be a chore, Abby found it relaxing and having eaten mostly canned food for the past few days, fresh Italian cuisine sounded appealing.

Her parents left her alone for twenty whole minutes, which was about ten more than Abby had counted on, but at the twenty minute mark she looked up from her tomato sauce and found her mother standing on the other side of the kitchen island with an unsure look on her face.

"Can you show me how to do all of this?" She asked hesitantly.

"Show you how to do what?" Abby asked, confused. She'd expected a confrontation, not her mother's timidity.

"This…cooking," JJ clarified and Abby looked her, shocked by the request; her mother's horrible cooking was famous in both their blood family and their FBI family, so for her to ask for cooking lessons was…odd to say the least. JJ saw the look her daughter was giving her, so she explained. "You're going to be leaving soon and I don't want all of the cooking duties to fall to your father, so I figure I'd better learn some of this stuff before you go."

Abby thought about that for a minute; it made sense, although it would've been nice if her mom had been as worried about her doing all of the cooking when she was growing up. Whatever, she wanted to learn now and that was what was important. "Um, okay. Can you grab the parmesan cheese and the grater? I need a ton of shredded cheese for the recipe. You _do _know what the grater looks like, right?" She added a small smile to the end of the sentence so her mom would know she was joking and JJ took the jab in stride.

"_Yes_ Abby, I know what a grater is," she said as she gathered up the requested materials. They worked side by side in silence for a few minutes before JJ spoke up again. "I'm sorry," she said quietly.

And there it was, those two little words had the power to bring all of Abby's anger right back to the surface again. "Are you sorry for not telling me, or are you sorry you got caught keeping yet _another _huge secret from me?" She asked, her voice getting louder with each word.

JJ cringed slightly under her daughter's anger; she had hoped she'd given the teen enough time to simmer down so they could talk about things rationally, but apparently she hadn't. She also felt like their roles had been reversed as she'd used the 'are you sorry you did it or are you sorry you got caught' line with her daughter more times than she could count. "Both," she finally said with a slight sigh. "Honey, I didn't want you to worry about me; you have so much going on in your life right now and I didn't want this thing with me to get in the way of that! I wanted to protect you from the 'what ifs' I was facing for as long as I could…I wanted to protect you from reality for a little while."

"But I don't need to be protected, I can handle more than you realize!" Abby screeched as she slammed her cooking utensils down on the countertop. "God! Are you and dad EVER going to see me as an adult?"

"Probably not," a deep voice said from the kitchen doorway. Abby glared at her father as he walked into the room and stood next to her mother.

"I wasn't talking to you," she snapped. God, did he have to get involved in everything?

"Tough," he said with a shrug, "This concerns me too; I kept this secret from you along with your mother, so I'm not going to let her take all of the heat. As for seeing you as an adult…I don't know if parents _ever_ see their kids as adults, I think they always see them as kids who need their help and guidance. Do you think my mother sees an accomplished agent and best-selling author when she looks at me, or do you think she sees me as the nine year old who used to run around in short pants? Sorry Abby, but to me you'll always be the beautiful but gangly fifteen year old that you were when I first met you and I'm sure your mom still sees you as the little girl who used to run around the house playing dress-up in her clothes."

"But I was never that kid!" Abby yelled and a clap of thunder sounded at the same time, as if to give her statement more meaning. "I'm sorry mom, but I was never that kid with you! Sure, grandma Abby and I used to play like that while you were working, but not too much since we were both afraid of disturbing grandfather Jareau. And then, after she died, we were both too busy trying to keep afloat and we didn't have time for anything like that!" Seeing her mom's stricken look, Abby lowered her voice to a more conversational level and continued, but this time she chose her words a little more wisely.

"I'm not saying I had a bad childhood," she clarified, "But once grandma Abby died and we moved to DC, I took on a lot of adult responsibilities because you needed me to. I learned how to cook, I did most of the cleaning and laundry, I kept my grades perfect and I got my first part-time job when I was fifteen so I could take some of the financial stress off of you. I'm not saying those were bad things, but you treated me like an adult long before I was eighteen and now suddenly you want to treat me like I'm a kid? That's not fair!"

"I know it's not, and I'm sorry!" JJ yelled back. "Most of your life hasn't been fair! It's not fair that I raised you in near poverty for most of your life! It's not fair that your grandfather is an asshole and your grandmother died so early in your life! It's not fair that you didn't meet your father until you were fifteen! It's not fair that you were terrorized by psychos this past spring! It's not fair that you barely had a childhood, but I'm trying to make up for it now! Whether you like it or not, it's our job to look out for you, whether you're three years old or thirty!"

"But you're _not _looking out for me, you're once again trying to control my life and I'm tired of it!"

"How?" Dave yelled back at her, "Like your mother, I thought we were protecting you, so please explain to me how we're controlling your life!"

"You're not letting me make informed decisions!" She shouted back. "YOU decided that I was better off not knowing about mom's health, not me! Mom pretty much admitted to me that if she had been sick, the two of you would have let me go off to Berkeley thinking everything was fine back here. How is that NOT controlling my life? You won't let me make my own decisions!"

"Okay, I think we need to all take a deep breath and calm down," JJ said as she put the food back in the refrigerator; they would be ordering out that night.

"You know what the worst part of this is?" Abby asked in a softer voice as tears sprung to her eyes. "I thought I was getting better after everything that happened last spring, I thought I was showing you guys that I was making progress, but you see me as emotionally damaged, as someone who can't take any bad news...someone who can't deal with life's challenges and that really hurts." By this time tears were running down her face and JJ moved closer to her and threw her arms around her.

"Honey, we DON'T think you're emotionally damaged and we DO think you could've handled it," she reiterated. "We just didn't want to throw one more horrible thing at you."

"Your mom's right, Pumpkin," Dave said as he joined the hug. "We know you've been trying and we've seen that you're less afraid to be alone and that your nightmares have decreased significantly. We were only trying to protect you, but maybe we went about it in the wrong way."

Abby knew that was as close to an apology as she was going to get from her parents and she was tired of arguing with them, so she just nodded and let them hug her. She'd said her piece and it was up to them to start treating her more like an adult and less like a child.

xxxxxxxxxx

Later that night, Abby crawled tiredly into bed, picked up her book and began to read. Ten minutes later, there was a light knock on her door.

"Come in, mom," she said. The door opened and JJ entered hesitantly; while she had made up with her daughter, dinner had been quiet and somewhat tense and Abby had retired to her bedroom almost as soon as the meal was finished.

"I just came in to say goodnight," she said as she stood next to her bed.

Abby sat up against the head board. "You can sit down."

JJ sat on the edge of her daughter's bed and smiled hesitantly at her. "Are we okay?"

Abby thought for a minute and nodded, "Yeah, I guess we are."

"Good," JJ said as her smile grew a little with relief. "I really _am _sorry that we kept such a big secret from you, it's just…well, now that your dad and I are seriously considering having another baby, I've been thinking back on your childhood and you were right earlier, you really didn't have one and that's largely my fault. I guess I've been trying to give you what you never had, even if it's too late."

Abby sighed, "You were a great mom to me and you'll be an even better mom to your next kid. I didn't say all of that stuff earlier as a rip on you, but I needed you guys to see that I'm not some dumb kid."

"I know you're not, honey and maybe someday we'll be able to tone down our protective nature towards you…a little bit anyway."

"I suppose that's the best I'm going to get, right?" Abby asked with a wry smile. JJ nodded and gave her another hug.

"Abby, I know you were mad at us and you needed time to think," she said as she pulled away from her daughter and looked at her somewhat sternly, "But you can't disappear like that ever again. With all that your father and I have seen in our jobs, we were frantic with worry when we learned you weren't with Gibbs."

"Frantic," her dad's voice chimed in from the doorway. "You can't imagine all of the horrible thoughts that ran through my head." He moved into the room and took a seat in her desk chair, his gaze never moving from her.

"I know, and I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you guys worry, honest! I just needed some time to clear my head, but you're right, I should have told you where I was." She thought for a moment and then looked at her dad, "So how pissed was Gibbs when he learned I wasn't here?"

"On a scale of one to ten? He was at about 113," Dave told her. "Obviously he was worried about you, but he was furious that you lied to him in your note."

"Technically I didn't lie," she said, hoping to save her skin with the older NCIS agent. "I told him I was going back to the cabin and technically I did that…I just went to your hunting cabin."

Dave laughed, "Why don't you try that defense with him and see how far it gets you?"

"Crap," the teen said, not wanting to accept her fate.

"How about this? I'll try to talk Gibbs down from the ledge if you can talk Penelope into not annihilating my electronic livelihood," Dave suggested, knowing if anyone could talk some sense into the technical analyst, it would be his daughter.

"What did you do?" Abby asked in surprise. After he filled her in, she just shook her head. "I don't know dad, Gibbs might be the lesser of two evils in this situation but since you're obviously scared of a woman that doesn't even carry a gun, I'll help you out."

"Gee, thanks Pumpkin," Dave said sarcastically as he kissed her forehead. "You look tired, you should get some sleep."

"I will," she said as she snuggled down into her bed. Once she was settled, JJ also kissed her forehead.

"Goodnight honey," she said.

"G'night," she said sleepily. "Hey mom? I'm _really _glad you're not sick."

"Thanks Abby; I love you," JJ said as tears pricked her eyes.

"Love you too mom."


	9. Chapter 9

Changes-Chapter 9

**~Oh my gosh, I know this is the first posting in forever and I apologize for that...my muse has run away and I can't seem to find her. Anyway, I've found that writing shorter chapters (1k-2k words) helps me write better so I'm hoping to post on this (and my other stories) more frequently with smaller chapters. I'm crossing my fingers.**

**~Check out the Chit Chat on Author's Corner for new challenges, the featured author of the week and discussions about topics like plagiarism, writing characters with disabilities and writing reviews. There are also general and specialized discussion threads.**

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As he heard a car door close outside, Dave let out a sigh of relief. "She's home," he murmured into his wife's ear as he glanced at the clock. It was two-thirty in the morning, which wasn't as bad as it could've been, but it was still pretty goddamned late. He'd nearly gone through the roof earlier that evening when JJ had told him that she'd told their daughter she could stay out as late as she wanted tonight. While a part of him understood why, it was hers and Jack's last night together before she left for college and he left for his travel adventure, he also knew what she was pretty much giving them permission to do and the thought of his little girl being intimate with any guy, even one as great as Jack, made him want to lock her in her bedroom until she turned forty.

"Good," JJ replied groggily, "Now maybe now you can get some sleep." As she said the words, she knew she was not one to talk about not sleeping. While they had gone to bed hours ago, JJ had done little more than doze since she'd turned off her bedside lamp at around midnight. No matter how old Abby was, JJ couldn't fully exhale until she was safely home. She wondered, with some unease, how she would sleep once her daughter was living 2,500 miles away from her. Would she always have the small knot of unease in her stomach? Would horrifying scenarios continue to run through her mind? It was ironic; she'd gotten through the horrors of the past spring without needing counseling but her daughter going off to school might be the thing that got her to lie down on a therapist's couch.

"I'm sorry, was I imagining the tossing and turning next to me for the past two hours?" Dave asked sarcastically as he spooned against his wife.

"Shut up," she muttered as she lightly jabbed her elbow into his ribs, knowing he was right. She was about to say something else but there was a light knock on their slightly open door and then Abby stuck her head in.

"I'm home," she whispered when she saw that her mother was somewhat awake. She had wiped her face as she'd walked up the stairs, so she hoped that between the low light of the hallway and her parent's sleepy state, they wouldn't be able to tell she'd been crying. She should've known better, seeing as her dad was a profiler extraordinaire and her mother might as well be one.

"Are you okay, sweetie?" JJ asked, pushing through her sleepiness.

"I'm fine," the teen lied. "G'night." She might have gotten away with it if she hadn't sniffled loudly just before she shut her own bedroom door, but it she did and both JJ and Dave heard it.

"She's upset and trying to hide it," Dave murmured in JJ's ear. Both he and his wife knew it would be difficult for the kids to say goodbye, but they'd hoped it wouldn't go _too _badly for them. It seems as though their worries had come true.

"Gee, really? You think?" She shot back sardonically as she disentangled herself from his arms. She slowly got out of the warm and comfortable bed and stretched before starting for the door.

"Want me to come with?" Dave asked as he moved to get up.

JJ put her hand up to stop him. "Do you _really _want to hear about what happened with Jack tonight?"

"No, but-"

"Besides, she'll probably open up to me more if it's girl talk."

"Well, call me if you need me," he said lying back down on the plush bed; he wasn't too upset at being left out of the conversation. If his wife wanted to handle this latest round of teenage romantic drama, then who was he to complain? Besides, now that Abby was home, sleep was calling his name and he wanted to answer.

JJ watched in dismay as her husband rolled over and pulled the covers up to his chin; he looked waaaayyyy too comfy so as she left the room, she flipped on the overhead lights before pulling the door closed. She bit down on her lip as she heard him curse loudly.

Crossing the narrow hallway, she knocked on her daughter's door. After hearing a watery "come in" from her, she opened the door and found the teen sitting on the edge of her bed, crying softly with her face in her hands.

"Oh honey," JJ said as she closed the door behind her and then rushed to her side. She sat down next to her daughter and pulled her into her arms. "What happened?"

"We…we broke up!" Abby said, which brought a fresh torrent of tears cascading down her face.

"I'm so sorry Abby," JJ said honestly; she loved Jack like he was her own son and she knew that, after eight years of being together in some form or another, her daughter's feelings also ran very deep for the boy.

"He-he told me that-that," Abby was crying so hard her breath was hitching, "we both were about to-to start new things in life and we-we need to be able to experience them fully. He doesn't want me to miss out on the complete college experience."

"And how do you feel about that?" JJ asked as she felt her daughter's tears soak through the shoulder of her pajama top.

"I don't want to miss out either but I don't want to lose him!" She wailed. "But I told him that I don't want him to miss out on his experience either, so I agreed with him that we should just go back to being good friends." What she didn't tell her mother was that she and Jack came to their decision after making love for most of the night.

"It sounds like you were very mature about it," JJ told Abby as she rubbed her back soothingly. "And you didn't really break up…it's not like you hate each other, you're just back to being best friends, which you've always been."

"He asked me to go with him on his trip," Abby said softly as she tried to get her crying under control. The soothing circles on her back stopped and she heard her mother suck in a deep breath through her teeth. "I told him no, that taking a year off might be the right thing for him, but it isn't for me," she said before her mom could freak out.

Thank God, JJ thought but didn't verbalize her thought. Instead, she tried to reassure her daughter. "Honey, things will work out, you'll make new friends and have new experiences at Berkeley, but you'll never forget about Jack and he'll always be a part of your life. Besides, if you're really meant to be together, your relationship will survive this."

"I know," she said in a quivering voice, "But I wish things didn't have to be so hard…I sometimes wish I could still stay a little kid, you know?"

"I know," JJ told her as she smoothed her tear soaked bangs out of her eyes. "Believe me, I wish you could stay young too; it's not easy for me to see my baby getting ready to leave the nest." After JJ spoke, the two of them slowly looked around at the boxes that were scattered around Abby's room. While she wasn't taking everything with her, she was taking the most important reminders of her family and home with her to California and, in less than thirty-six hours, those boxes would be loaded into the back of the SUV so they could accompany her and her parents on the road-trip to Berkeley.

A few minutes later, after Abby's tears died down, JJ told her to go wash her face and change into her pajamas. Abby followed the order and while she was in the bathroom, JJ wandered around her room. It was weird to see her bookshelves and walls nearly bare and she once again wished that Abby had chosen a local college so she could've lived with them longer.

"Weird, huh?" Abby asked as she came back into the bedroom. "It looks like it did when we first moved in here with dad."

"It sure does," JJ agreed. "Remember how strange it was living out in the country at first?"

Abby nodded as she got into bed. "It was crazy going from our tiny little apartment in the middle of the city to this giant mansion in the middle of nowhere…crazy but nice. I've always felt safe here, even with everything that happened in the spring."

"Me too," her mom agreed as she tucked her into bed. She bent down and kissed Abby's forehead. As she stood back up, she heard her daughter say in a quiet voice, "Um, you can stay if you want to." Knowing Abby was feeling sad over her break-up and a bit insecure about her big move coming in less than two days, JJ nodded and slid into the bed next to her.

"Night mom, I love you," Abby said, grateful that she decided to stay with her. She knew it was childish to want her mother, but she also knew she was going to miss her a lot when she moved to California.

"Goodnight Abby, I love you too," JJ responded gently. Within minutes, they were both sound asleep.


	10. Chapter 10

**~Be sure to sign up for the May future fic challenge at the Chit Chat on Author's Corner forum and, while you're there be sure to ask klcm a question, as she is the featured author of the week.**

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This was the day. This was the day that Abby had both looked forward to and dreaded ever since she had received her acceptance to UC Berkeley. This was the day when her dad and honorary uncle would load her belongings into the back of the rented SUV and she and her parents would begin the cross country journey to San Francisco. After that, her parents would return home to everything familiar while she remained in a brand new city where she knew no one and nothing. As she added the last of her framed pictures to the open box, she began to seriously doubt her decision to go to the far away and prestigious university but before she could work herself up into a complete tizzy, there was a knock on her open door.

"Is this the last box, Abby?" Her uncle Aaron asked. While she wasn't bringing everything from her bedroom with her to California, she was bringing quite a few things and her pseudo uncle had volunteered to help them load up the SUV.

Abby looked around the room and then nodded. "Yup, this is the last of my stuff," she told him as she grabbed the roll of packing tape and sealed the box. "Thanks for helping pack everything up."

"No problem," he said with a sad smile. "I helped Jack load his car yesterday and it seemed only right that I see you off today."

"Did he say where he was going first?"

"No, he said he'd go 'wherever the car took him'," Hotch said as he reached into his back pocket. He pulled out his wallet and then removed four business cards. "Here," he said handing them to his niece.

"What are these?" Abby asked, confused.

"They are people I know at the San Francisco Bureau office. If you ever need immediate help, you can call any of these guys."

"This is kind of a screwed up going away present, Uncle Aaron," Abby said with a wry smile.

He smiled back at her, "I know it is, but I want you to be safe. I hope it goes without saying that you can call me day or night if you ever need _anything._"

"I know I can," she said softly. "Thanks for everything, Uncle Aaron. Not just for kinda being my dad when I was younger, but also for helping us out when everything hit the fan this past spring."

Hotch pulled her into a gentle hug. "I'll always be here for you, Abby; whether you like it or not, you're stuck with me."

"I know," she said, "And I love you."

"I love you too, sweetheart," Hotch told her, his voice constricting. He finally let her go and picked up the box she had just packed. "Coming down with me?"

She shook her head, "No, I'm going to throw my bathroom stuff in my duffel bag. I'll be down in a minute."

As her uncle left the room, her grandmother entered it carrying a large ziplock bag. "I made you some peanut butter cookies for your trip," she said as she handed Abby the bag.

"Thanks," she said as she put them in a side pocket of her duffel bag.

"So how are you doing, Little One?" Marie asked as she sat down on the edge of the bed. She didn't have to be a profiler like her son to know that the teen was anxious about leaving home.

"God Nonna, it's so weird! I've only lived here for a few years and, as I look around at everything, I feel like I've lived here my entire life!"

"That's because you've been happy here," her grandmother said with a gentle smile.

"I _am _happy here, so why do I want to leave?" Abby asked as she paced the room. "I must have been _crazy _to apply to Berkeley! And then to decide to go there? To move thousands of miles away from everyone I love? I should have my head examined! Oh, wait; I'm _already _seeing a shrink because I'm such a basket case!"

"Abby-" Marie tried interrupting, but the girl was too far gone in her shrill tirade to let her grandmother get a word in edgewise.

"What if I hate it? What if I hate the school? What if my roommate is even crazier than I am? What if my professors are horrible? What if something happens to mom or dad and it takes me forever to get home? What if everyone here forgets about me? What if-"

"Enough!" Marie interjected loudly but in a gentle tone of voice. She knew Abby was worried about leaving home, just as she had been when she'd left Italy for the United States, but she also knew she had to calm the teen down before she worked herself up into a full blown tizzy. "Come sit down, Little One," she said patting the edge of the bed next to her.

Abby shook her head, "Nonna, I have to-"

"Come sit down," the older woman ordered more sternly this time. Abby knew it was in her best interest to never ignore the infrequent direct orders that came from her grandmother, so she quickly took a seat next to her. As soon as she sat, Marie took one of her hands and held it between hers. "Abby, you are _not_ crazy, you're simply curious about the world outside of your little bubble here. Would things have been easier for you if you'd chosen a school in DC? Sure, but you're a lot like I was when I was your age; you're eager for new experiences and there is nothing wrong with that!"

Abby nodded at her grandmother's assessment and the older woman could see she was beginning to calm down, so she kept talking. "As for you being a basket case, if I ever hear you refer to yourself like that again, you'll be meeting up with the same wooden spoon that your father got to know very well when he was younger, understand?" She asked rhetorically. "You've made great strides since the events of this past spring and don't you ever think anything different. As for hating Berkeley? If you decide you don't like it or that it's not a good fit for you, you can always transfer to another school next year, so don't think this is a major life commitment, alright?"

"Okay," Abby said softly as she felt her heart rate return to normal.

"And trust me Abigail, no one here will _ever _forget you," Marie said firmly as she pulled the teen to her side for a hug, "You are a wonderful granddaughter and I am incredibly proud of you. You remember that when things get tough."

"I will," Abby told her as she pulled out of the embrace. "Thanks Nonna, I love you."

"I love you too, Little One," she said as she hugged her and pressed a kiss to her cheek. After a minute, Abby pulled out of the embrace and just sat on the edge of the bed as she gathered her thoughts. Finally, she took a deep breath, stood up and picked up her duffle bag. Taking a last look around the room, she said, "Well, I mom and dad are waiting; I should probably get downstairs."

Marie nodded and also stood up. She held the door open for her granddaughter and, as she watched her walk through it, she knew she was witnessing the end of an era.

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Five days later, after a long, and somewhat leisurely road trip across the USA, the Rossi family arrived at their luxurious suite at a Fisherman's Wharf hotel in San Francisco. They had planned their road trip so they would arrive in San Francisco two days before Abby was scheduled to move into her dorm room so they could both sight see and pick up many much needed items for Abby's dorm room. Because they hadn't wanted to pack the rented SUV too full, they'd brought only half a dozen boxes and three suitcases full of Abby's clothing and personal items with them and then they would purchase the rest of her things once they arrived in the city. With that in mind, the next day found the three of them visiting Target, Bed Bath and Beyond and Best Buy.

Once everything had been bought and Dave's credit card had nearly been melted, they had returned to the hotel to relax for the rest of the afternoon and evening. They enjoyed a nice meal in the hotel's restaurant and then watched a movie together on their suite's large, plasma screen television. After that, they all went to bed early.

The next day, the family played tourists throughout the city. They walked around Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39, they went across the Golden Gate Bridge, they wandered around Chinatown and the Financial district, took in the sights at Union Square and finally ended up in Little Italy for dinner. After the long day in the city, they returned to their hotel suite fairly early so Abby could do a final check to make sure she had everything ready for the big move the next day.

JJ found the whole 'sending her daughter off to college' thing much more difficult than she thought she would and she couldn't bear to watch her daughter do her final packing, so she went out to the balcony and made herself comfortable in the plush, outdoor sofa. She got lost in her thoughts and before she knew it, Abby was next to her on the sofa.

"All packed?" JJ asked, feigning lightheartedness as she wrapped her arm around her daughter's shoulders and pulled her closer.

Abby nodded, "Yeah, it looks like I have everything," she said quietly as she rested her head on her mom's shoulder. The two of them sat in silence for a few minutes, watching the sun slowly set over the Bay.

"What if I'm making a huge mistake?" Abby whispered and JJ could hear the fear and barely suppressed tears in her voice.

"Oh honey," JJ said, tightening her hold on her daughter. "You're not making a mistake, you'll be fine here."

"But what if I'm not? I don't know anyone here and I don't know the city. Maybe I should have stayed in DC."

"Abby, you'll get to know people and you'll get to know the city. We picked up maps and schedules for the BART, Muni and the city buses today; you'll learn how to get around in no time." Since parking was practically non-existent on campus, Abby's car was sitting in one of the sheds at the cabin, waiting to be used during her vacations from school.

"I'm scared, mom," she said in a teary voice. "What if I can't make it here? What if I screw up? I don't want to disappoint you and dad."

"Listen to me Abby," JJ said more forcefully. "You are _not _going to disappoint anyone! You're going to do great here and if you don't, it's okay, all your father and I ask is that you try your best." JJ didn't want to recreate the pressure to be perfect that her daughter had felt during high school. "And if you decide you don't like Berkeley, you can change schools at the end of the year; it's not like you signed your acceptance form in blood."

Abby let out a small sigh of relief. "That's what Nonna told me too, I'm just being an idiot."

"No you're not. Honey, I would be more worried if you _weren't _nervous or scared but trust me, you'll be fine here. Plus there are about a million ways for all of us to keep in touch."

"You're damn right there are," a deep voice said from the open balcony door. A few seconds later, Dave sat down on the other side of his daughter. "I didn't sit through three hours of Garcia's tutorial on how to use Skype for nothing. That woman didn't miss an opportunity to make fun of my technological ineptitude."

Both of his girls giggled at that and the mood lightened considerably. They made tentative plans for the next day and then Abby got up to take a shower. Once she was out of earshot, Dave scooted closer to his wife and pulled her back against his chest.

"What are you thinking about?" He asked as he rested his chin on her shoulder.

"How good you smell fresh out of the shower," JJ responded with a smile as she reached back and patted his damp hair.

"You could've joined me."

"With our daughter out here? Yeah right."

"Speaking of which, were you able to reassure her?" Dave asked. He'd called his mother the previous day and she'd told him some of Abby's concerns.

"I think I did," his wife replied. "God, she grew up so fast! It seems like just yesterday I was pregnant with her and now we're about to move her into her dorm room." As she spoke, JJ flashed back to the night Abby was born…


	11. Chapter 11

Changes-Chapter 11

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_18 years previous..._

"Hello?" Abigail Jareau said groggily as she answered the telephone beside her bed. The numbers on the clock next to it read 2:11am.

"Mom?" A frantic voice at the other end of the line said.

"Jenny, what's wrong?" Abigail asked as she sat up and turned on the bedside lamp. Her husband, who had been sleeping next to her, cursed and rolled away from the light source.

"Mom, something's wrong!" JJ said in a frightened voice. "The baby is moving around more than it ever has and now I'm all wet!"

"Are you having contractions?" Her mother asked in a steady voice as she tried to calm her panicked daughter down.

"I don't think so; I've been having Braxton Hicks contractions for the last week or so, but I haven't felt anything worse than those."

"How about back pain?" Abigail asked as she mentally congratulated herself for putting a cordless phone near her bed. The lack of a cord allowed her to move about her room as she talked to her daughter and she was able to both change from her pajamas into normal clothes and begin to pack her suitcase while never losing contact with her daughter.

"Well…yeah," JJ said as she thought about it. "But my back has been hurting me since my seventh month."

"Has it been hurting more today?"

"Mmmmm hmmmm," JJ said in a moan.

"Honey, are you alright?" Abigail asked as she threw her bathroom toiletries into the suitcase.

"I think I just had an actual contraction!" JJ said in a high pitched voice, the panic in her voice rising to a new level.

"I think you're in labor, Jenny," her mother replied calmly. "You need to get yourself to the hospital." Thankfully they had moved her into a small, studio apartment that was less than two blocks from the Georgetown medical center, so she could walk there if need be.

"LABOR?" JJ shouted. "No! No I'm not! The baby isn't due for three more weeks!"

"I'm sure it will be fine," Abigail said soothingly as she looked around the room for anything else that would be needed for her trip to Washington DC. "Three weeks isn't very early; I'm sure the baby will be just fine."

"You don't understand!" JJ screeched. "I have finals! I have papers I need to finish! That's why I was up so late tonight! There is no WAY I can have this baby right now! It will just have to wait until I'm done with everything."

Abigail smiled as she heard the characteristic Jareau stubbornness in her daughter's voice. "It doesn't work like that, Jenny. The baby doesn't have a calendar in there."

"So I'll send it one! If I roll one up real tight, I'm sure I could-"

"Jenny," her mother said firmly, "You are in labor; you need to focus on that right now. Can you get to the hospital?"

"I…I don't know. Ever since my water broke, things feel much…heavier and it's harder to walk."

"What about your next door neighbor? You said the two of you had become friendly; can she drive you?"

"Hang on, I'll go and ask her." JJ set the phone down and made her way to the apartment next to her. While she did that, her mother finished packing.

"Did you hear, Jonathan?" She asked her husband. "We're about to be grandparents."

"I heard," her husband said coldly. "And I can't wait for the two of you to parade the bastard child around town."

"That is the LAST time you will ever refer to the baby as a bastard, Jonathan. What Jenny did is NOT the baby's fault and you are NOT going to hold anything against it. If you do, I'm going to start getting very chatty with the people in this town. Understand?"

Jonathan Jareau would've had to have been a moron not to pick up on his wife's veiled threat, so he gave a sharp nod and then rolled back over and tried going back to sleep.

"Mom? Are you still there?"

"I'm still here, honey," Abigail said as she started down the stairs to the lower level of the house.

"Stephanie is going to drive me to the hospital," she said and her mother could tell she was trying to be brave…for her sake and for her soon to be child's sake.

"Good, and I'm leaving right now so I'll be there in a few hours, okay?"

"Okay mom. Hurry."

"I will Jenny."

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Three hours later, Abigail Jareau rushed into the Labor and Delivery ward of Georgetown Memorial hospital.

"Hello, I'm looking for my daughter, Jennifer Jareau; she is in labor and should've arrived here a few hours ago."

The nurse glanced at a computer screen and said, "Jennifer Jareau is in exam room 6; it's at the end of the hall."

"Exam room?" Abigail asked in confusion. "Why isn't she in a regular room?"

"The on-call doctor hasn't requested a move yet, so we have to keep her in the exam room."

"Where is her regular doctor?" Both she and her daughter had met with _many_ doctors before finally deciding on her current OB/GYN and she was puzzled as to why he hadn't been called.

"Dr. Johnson is out of town for a medical conference this week so Dr. Rogers is taking care of your daughter."

"Alright, I'm going to my daughter's room; can you please have Dr. Rogers meet us there so I can have an update?"

"Of course," the kindly nurse replied.

"Thank you," Abigail said as she made her way down the hall to her daughter's temporary room. Pausing in front of the room, she took a deep breath in order to steady herself and then knocked once before going in.

JJ looked up from the uncomfortable exam table she was laying on. "Oh thank God!" She exclaimed. "I'm so glad you're here, mom!"

"There is nothing that would have kept me away, sweetheart," Abigail said as she smoothed her daughter's sweaty hair off of her face. "How are you doing?"

"It hurts; it hurts worse than anything I could've ever imagined," JJ said with a moan. "When the contractions hit, it's like every single pain receptor in my body is activated. I swear to God, even my hair hurts!"

"Hasn't the doctor given you anything for the pain?" Her mother asked, her eyebrows knitted in concern. Her daughter had been there for well over three hours, why hadn't she gotten something to help her? And why was she still in this sterile room with the uncomfortable exam table instead of in one of the comfortable delivery suites?

Her daughter shook her head, "I haven't seen the doctor since I arrived and he did the initial exam. Truth be told, he's kind of an ass. Once he got a glimpse of my age and saw that I was here alone, he pretty much stopped talking to me and just barked orders at the nurse."

"I see," Abigail said through thinned lips. "I'll be right back, honey, I'm just going to go get you some ice chips, okay?"

"Okay mom," JJ said tiredly as she tried to find a comfortable position on the hard table.

"Is there anyone else you want me to call?" Her mother asked hesitantly.

Tears pricked at JJ's eyes as she thought about David; he should be there, he should be there to witness their child's birth. This should be a happy occasion for him…for both of them but as much as she wanted to give her mother his number, she didn't; she did _not_ want him coming back just because of the baby; that would be a disaster. "No, there's no one else," she said softly.

Abigail nodded sadly, left the exam room and stormed down to the nurses' station. "I would like to speak to Dr. Rogers right _now_," she said sharply to the on-duty nurse. Gone was the polite Abigail Jareau from earlier and in her place was a mama bear whose cub was in pain and being ignored.

"I'm Dr. Rogers," a white coated man said from one of the chairs behind the desk. As soon as Abigail laid her eyes upon him, she disliked him. He had an air of arrogance about him that could almost be physically felt. As he stood up, he looked at her like she was barely worth his time.

"And I'm Abigail Jareau," she said forcefully, "Jennifer's mother." The doctor gave her a blank stare, so she elaborated. "You know, Jennifer, the young woman you've had laboring alone in an exam room for the last three hours!" A look of dawning and distaste came over his face when he remembered his patient.

"How can I help you Mrs. Jareau?" He asked and she could hear the annoyance in his voice.

"First, you can tell me why you haven't moved my daughter to one of the nicer rooms yet and then you can tell me why you haven't ordered anything for her pain. And then you can tell me what the cardiologist said when he examined her."

"Cardiologist?" The OB/GYN asked blankly.

"Yes," Abigail said loudly. "Since becoming pregnant, Jenny has developed a heart murmur, arrhythmia and hypertension! If you had bothered to read her chart, you would have seen that she's been in the care of a cardiologist for the last two moths!"

"Mrs. Jareau," Dr. Rogers said in a placating tone, "I was just about to call for a cardiology consult. As for your daughter's room assignment? I'm a very busy man and you can't expect me to-"

"What I expect, _doctor,_" Abigail said sharply, "Is for you to care for my daughter without judgment. Yes, she may be young and unmarried, but she deserves the same level of care as any other woman who comes through here."

"Well maybe if this experience is less than ideal for her, she'll be more careful in her choices in the future," the doctor snipped. "Do you really want her back here in another year? Because I see that frequently in girls your daughter's age."

"How DARE you sit in judgment of my daughter? She may have made choices that I don't agree with, but she does NOT deserve substandard care because of them, nor does my future grandchild! I want you OFF of my daughter's case! I want another doctor!"

"Mrs. Jareau?" A kind looking older woman stepped between her and the doctor, as if to ward off a certain physical alteration. "My name is Dorothy Kowalski and I'm a nurse midwife. Why don't I take a look at your daughter? I'm not as busy as Dr. Rogers and maybe I can make her more comfortable."

"Fine," Abigail said through clenched teeth as she glared at the doctor. "Anything is better than him!"

Dorothy practically dragged Abigail away from the nurse's station and, once they were out of earshot, she resumed speaking to the woman. "I'm sorry for Dr. Roger's behavior; he has definite ideas about who deserves compassionate care and who does not."

"And what about you?" Abigail asked, not wanting her daughter to face further judgment.

The midwife shrugged, "I love taking care of pregnant women; how they got that way is no concern of mine, I just want to help them bring a new life into the world."

As the two women arrived at JJ's room, Abigail felt much better having the midwife in charge of her daughter's care. She was further impressed when Dorothy entered the room, introduced herself to JJ and talked with her for a while before performing an exam. Within an hour of taking over JJ's care, Dorothy had her transferred to a labor and delivery suite, arranged for a cardiologist consult and had an anesthesiologist administer an epidural. Once those things were done, it became a waiting game.

xxxxxxxxxx

Six hours later, JJ's screams could be heard throughout the halls of the labor and delivery ward.

"God it hurts! It fucking hurts! It's tearing me apart!" She screamed as she pushed during a contraction. "Why didn't they tell us about the pain in the fucking Lamaze classes?" She shouted as she squeezed her mother's hand.

"Because they know most women would never go through with this part if they knew how horrible it really is," Dorothy said from her position between JJ's legs. "We're getting close now, honey; all I need is a couple of more pushes and you'll be able to meet your child."

"AAAARGH! It feels like I'm being ripped in half!" JJ yelled as another contraction hit her just seconds after the last one had abated.

"Jenny, I know it's hard, but you need to try to do your breathing exercises," Dorothy said as she glanced at the heart monitor above her patient's head. "It will help both your heart rhythm _and _your blood pressure. The cardiologist said you could deliver vaginally, but if either of those rates goes haywire, Dr. Rogers will be in here to do a C-section faster than you can blink."

JJ took a few cleansing breaths. "Fine, let's just get this done," she said determinedly.

"Just think Jenny, soon you'll see your son or daughter," Abigail said encouragingly.

"It had better be REALLY fucking soon!" She yelled as she pushed, well beyond caring that she was dropping the f-bomb in front of her mother.

"I can see the head!" Dorothy said and both JJ and her mother looked up at the mirror above the midwife. Sure enough, they both saw the top of the head but it retreated back into JJ when she stopped pushing in order to catch her breath.

"Okay Jenny, just one more big push and you'll get to meet your baby," Dorothy said. JJ gripped her mother's hand tightly and bore down.

"Fuck me, fuck me, fuck ME this hurts!" She screamed. She watched in the mirror as the baby slipped out of her body and she felt an immense relief.

"Is it…is it okay?" She asked as she took some breaths from the oxygen mask near her head.

"She's beautiful," Dorothy said happily as she suctioned the baby's mouth and nose and then flicked the feet. A second later, the room was filled with a loud, healthy cry.

"She?" JJ asked.

Dorothy nodded, "You have a beautiful daughter, Jenny. Abigail, would you like to cut the cord?" With tears in her eyes, Abigail cut the umbilical cord that connected her daughter and granddaughter and then took the pink bundle from the midwife and handed it to her daughter.

JJ held her daughter close to her chest and cried in relief, wonderment and happiness. "I did it mom, I have my daughter."

"She's beautiful, Jenny," Abigail said through her tears as she sat close to her daughter and granddaughter. "Are you finally going to tell me the name you picked out for her?"

JJ nodded, "It's Abigail. Abigail Marie Jareau."

"You're naming her after me?" Her mother asked as her tears flowed harder.

"Of course I am! I couldn't have done any of this without you, mom and I know you'll be in her life forever."

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_Present day..._

JJ couldn't get the image of her daughter as newborn out of her head as they helped her move her things into her dorm room. It seemed like just yesterday she'd brought Abby home from the hospital and now here she was moving her into her dorm…her dorm that was over 2,000 miles from home. They finally got the last load moved up to her room and the three of them just stood in her dorm room, none of them wanting to say goodbye.

"You got a nice room," JJ said as she looked around the standard dorm room. "It's not too close to the communal bathroom, but not too far either." JJ knew she sounded like an idiot, but she wanted to prolong these last few minutes with her daughter.

"Your roommate is arriving tomorrow?" Dave asked. Like his wife, he was also trying to stretch out the little bit of time they had left with Abby.

"Yup, she's coming from Texas and I guess her family's car broke down on the way here," Abby said, fighting a panicky feeling. She knew that in a few short minutes, her parents would leave and she would be on her own for the first time in her life. She was both excited and terrified at the prospect and, at that moment, the feeling of terror was winning.

After a few moments of silence, Dave finally spoke up. "Well, your mom and I had better get going. We're dropping the SUV off at the car rental office and then we're catching a six o'clock flight back to DC."

"Oh," Abby said softly. "Okay."

"You have the credit card I gave you, right?" Dave had gotten Abby a credit card in her name that was linked to his and JJ's account. Most parents would be worried that their kid would rack up thousands of dollars worth of charges, but they knew they could trust their daughter to use it sensibly.

"Yup."

"Good, use that for books and for anything we may have forgotten, okay?"

Abby nodded. "Why don't I walk you guys out to the car?" She suggested, still not wanting to say goodbye to them.

The three of them entered the crowded hallway and made their way to the stairs. "Do NOT be a stranger," JJ told her daughter with a slight smile. "Garcia went through a lot of trouble to teach your dad how to Skype, so you'd better use it."

"I will."

"And there's always your cell phone, email and Facebook," Dave reminded her. As much as he'd eschewed social media, he'd let Garcia open a Facebook account so he would have another form of communication with his daughter. JJ already had an account, so she was all set. Little did her parents know that they had a very restricted view of Abby's profile.

"I'm not saying you have to call us every day, but I wouldn't mind if you did," he continued. "And you can call ANY time, day or night."

"And you can call any of our numbers; don't be afraid of bothering us if we're out on a case," JJ said. Her sabbatical was coming to an end and soon she and her husband would officially be back at work for the first time since the shootings.

"I got it," Abby told them as they got to the SUV.

They all stood there for a minute. "Well, I guess this is it," Abby said in a choked voice. Dave reached her before JJ did and he pulled her into a tight hug.

"You call us if you need ANYTHING, got it? And you stay safe! Remember all of the crap that Derek, Hotch, your mom and I have taught you over the years and keep your pepper spray on you at all times," he said gruffly.

"I will dad," Abby assured him, her voice muffled by his chest.

"I love you SO much, Pumpkin, and I am so incredibly proud of you," he said as he released her.

"I love you too, dad," she said as she blinked back tears. As she tried to keep herself from crying, she was pulled into her mother's arms. "I'm going to miss you so much, baby," JJ said through her own unshed tears. "I am prouder of you than you can possibly imagine! You've always been a hard worker, but don't forget to have some fun here too. I don't want to hear that you've turned into a hermit with your studies; be sure to get out and meet people, okay?"

"Okay mom," Abby sniffed as she willed herself to not burst into tears in front of everyone in the parking lot.

"I love you more than anything else in the world," JJ told her as she released her.

"I love you too mom."

Abby watched as her parents got into the SUV and drove out of the parking lot. Once the SUV was out of sight, she turned around and walked back to her room, blinking back tears the entire way. She made it to her dorm room before she broke down into sobs.

JJ managed to keep her tears at bay until they were out of the dormitory parking lot. Once Abby was out of view, all bets were off and she began to sob. Dave, whose eyes were also damp, tried to comfort her as he drove.

"It's not like we're never going to see her again, honey," he said hollowly as he reached for her hand. "There's Thanksgiving and Christmas and-"

"She's going to be living 2000 miles away from us, Dave," she wailed. "It's not going to be the same!"

"It'll be okay, you'll see," he said woodenly, not believing his own words. What he really wanted to do was fly back to DC, secure a transfer for him and JJ to the San Francisco field office and then move two blocks away from the UC Berkeley campus.

"I always knew I would have to say goodbye to her someday," JJ said through her tears, "I just didn't think it would be this difficult."


	12. Chapter 12

Changes-Chapter 12

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"I see our daughter posted some new pictures on her Facebook account," Dave groused as he walked into JJ's office. "She _does _know she's there to get an education and not party 24/7, right?"

As her husband flopped down on the chair in front of her, JJ gave a sigh; their daughter's newfound love of parties and everything social had been a concern of theirs for the last few weeks, but they'd talked to Abby and she had assured them that she was up to date in all of her classes and that she was doing well in all of them and that was good enough for her. Unfortunately, her husband was a different story; he'd tried everything he could to get Garcia to hack into the UC Berkeley system, but so far she had refused.

"Abby told us she was doing fine and until we hear otherwise, I'm going to believe her," JJ told him as she shuffled some of the files around on her desk.

"But Jen," he complained. "Every time we talk to her, all we hear about are the parties she's gone to and the weekend trips she's taken. When was the last time she talked about her classes? Her dorm life? Berkeley in general?" It had been over a month since they'd left their daughter in California and while it had been difficult at first, for both them and her, things had recently gotten better for everyone.

For the first week after they'd left Berkeley, JJ and Dave had gotten tearful phone calls from their daughter. She was unsure of everything; her new city, her classes, her dorm, and her roommate. She kept wondering if she had made a mistake, since she seemed to miss everything and everyone in Washington. After the first week though, she'd made some friends from her residence hall and her classes and her roommate had gotten her out and shown her the world beyond her room. After that, the emotional calls had lessened and the happy, story filled phone calls had increased.

"She's not a child anymore Dave, she has to learn how to balance things out for herself. Besides, one of the purposes of college is to find one's self."

"Except she's not finding herself, she's finding every party within a ten mile radius of her dorm room."

"It's not that bad," JJ argued. "Sure, she's been partying on the weekends, but it's not like she's going out every night. Besides, if I recall, we did much more than that when we were together and we didn't even leave my dorm room."

"Thanks for that, Jen," Dave said, annoyed. "Now not only do I have to worry about what she's doing when she's not in her room, I have to worry what's happening _in _her room."

"Look Dave, Abby's never given us any reason to doubt her and I'm not going to start now. If her grades aren't up to par at the end of the semester, then we'll lay down the law but for right now we're going to remember that she's a grown woman who is capable of making her own decisions. Capisce?"

"I got it," he grumbled, clearly not happy that JJ had taken their daughter's side. He mused over that for another moment before he remembered why he had come to her office in the first place. "Did the clinic get back to you?"

"Funny you should ask," she replied as a smile overtook her face. "The test results were very good; apparently my eggs haven't dried up yet and your swimmers are still quite active."

"So that means we're both still fertile?" Dave asked excitedly.

JJ nodded, "Yup, so in vitro for the surrogate mother shouldn't be a problem."

"You're sure you still want to do this, right?" Dave really wanted to have another baby with her, but due to complications she had while pregnant with Abby, JJ couldn't carry any more kids so they had decided to have a surrogate mother carry their child.

"I am a thousand percent sure," she said as she got up from her desk and moved to in front of where he was sitting. "There is nothing I want more than to have another baby with you."

He stood up, wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close to him. "That's good because Alan talked to the people at the clinic and he has a list of possible surrogates for us to interview this weekend." They were working closely with both a fertility clinic and an attorney who specialized in fertility issues and he was the one who was setting up the interviews with the surrogate candidates.

JJ sighed, "I was hoping we would be spending the weekend in the cabin, you know now that we don't have to worry about restricting our lovemaking to our bedroom. I think there are still some rooms we haven't made love in and I think we need to rectify that, don't you?"

"Well that's just mean to do to me right before I have to meet with Hotch and Strauss," he told her. "How am I supposed to sit through their pointless meeting with a raging hard on?"

"Well, I guess we'll have to do something about that, won't we?" JJ asked rhetorically. With a seductive smile, she closed the blinds that covered her office windows.

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"Hey, your dad called while you were at the library," Jessica Hanson said as Abby walked into their shared dorm room. "He wants you to call him back ASAP."

"I'm sure he does," Abby murmured as she set her book bag down on her bed. "I'm sure he has an opinion about the pictures I posted this afternoon."

"Why don't you just restrict access to your profile for your parents?" Jess asked.

"I keep forgetting to do it," she answered as she sat down on her bed. One of her biggest regrets was the day she said to her dad, "Hey, why don't I set you up with a Facebook account so we can communicate easier?" He seemed to take issue with just about everything she posted lately.

"Well," her roommate said as she got up from her desk chair, "I'm gonna go hit the caf for dinner; you coming?"

"Ugh, no!" Abby replied with a look of distaste on her face. "I passed the caf on my way back here and I almost threw up from the smell of it. I'll see if I can't find something around here to eat."

"I hear you, but I'm starving," Jessica said as she left the room. Once her roommate was gone, Abby lay down on her bed and looked around the small room; it had been weird getting used to dorm living at first, but now that she was used to trudging down a hallway to use the bathroom with 40 other girls, she was happy.

Her first few weeks at Berkeley had taken some getting used to. She'd made many tearful calls to her parents, telling them she'd made a terrible mistake but they had patiently assured her she hadn't and they'd told her that if she still felt that way at the end of the school year, she could move back home and go to school in DC. Thankfully, by her third week, her homesickness had mostly cleared up, although she still missed both her blood and FBI family, her parents and Jack but it was manageable. Having a slightly wild roommate had also helped her come out of her shell.

Jessica Hansen was a party girl to the core and that had worried Abby at first; she had been hoping for a studious and quiet roommate but she had gotten the exact opposite. As it turned out, they had been able to help each other out; Abby was already tutoring Jess in two of her classes and Jess brought Abby along to the weekend parties on campus. Plus, the two had the same taste in clothes and music and they were both night owls, so they got along fairly well. Also, if truth be told, it was nice for her to be her own person at Berkeley. No longer was she Abigail Rossi, daughter of super agents David and Jennifer Rossi. No, at school she could be whoever she wanted to be and she was having fun figuring out who that was. If it weren't for one particular guy, her life would've been damn near perfect.

Ben Jennings was in her biology class and he just couldn't get it through his thick skull that she wasn't interested in him. He'd asked her out a bunch of times and she'd politely turned him down but now…now he was getting more insistent. There were times she found him waiting for her outside of some of her classes and there was one scary morning when he was waiting for her outside of her dorm room with coffee. She didn't think he was dangerous, per se, he just wasn't used to being told 'no;' he reminded her a bit of her high school nemesis Adam Sanford, especially now that he'd begun getting a bit mean when she turned him down. As she pondered the situation, she realized she needed help from someone back home.

She'd thought briefly of calling her father and asking for his advice, but she knew the minute he learned she was having problems with a guy, he'd fly out to San Francisco and kill him, or at the very least, put him in intensive care. No, it would be much better for everyone involved if her dad never caught wind of this particular problem.

With that thought in mind, she called the second most overprotective man on the planet. .

xxxxxxxxxx

Hotch was sitting at his desk, trying to lessen the ever-growing pile of paperwork, when his desk phone rang. Not bothering to check the caller id, he picked it up and barked, "Hotchner."

"Uncle Aaron? It's Abby."

"Abby!" Hotch exclaimed, looking up from the file on his desk. "How are you?"

"I'm good, how are you? How's Emily? Have you heard from Jack?" Abby asked.

"I'm fine, as is Emily, and Jack is somewhere up in Canada; he said he wanted to head north before the first snowfall."

"That's good," Abby responded, a bit nervously. "How's the rest of the team?"

"Morgan and Penelope are disgustingly happy, Reid is…well, Reid, and your parents have gotten back into the swing of things fairly quickly. How are you? How's college life treating you?"

"College is great! I'm learning tons of stuff and I'm having a lot of fun," she told him.

"Yeah, so I've seen from your Facebook profile," Hotch admonished. "Maybe you're having _too much _fun."

Abby groaned, "Not you too! Come on, Uncle Aaron, college is supposed to be fun."

"I know, but just keep in mind you're also there to get an education."

"I won't," she promised. There was a long stretch of silence while Abby debated whether she really wanted to get her uncle involved in her problem. Hotch finally broke the silence.

"So why are you calling, Abby?" He asked suspiciously.

"What do you mean?" She responded in a high-pitched, nervous voice. "Can't I just call to say hi?"

"You can, except you haven't since you were about thirteen years old and even then you called because you needed someone to tell your mom that you'd spilled bleach all over her favorite dress," he said dryly. "So what's up?"

"Fine," she said with a resigned sigh. "I have a problem that I need help with, but you have to promise not to tell my mom and dad about it."

"Okay," he agreed, his curiosity piqued.

"And you have to promise not to fly out here and take care of it yourself."

"Fine," he said, knowing that whatever she was about to tell him was going to be big.

"You have to promise!"

"I _promise_, Abby, now what is it?" He asked impatiently. He listened as she relayed the problems she was having with the boy and the more she told him, the angrier he got, but he tried to conceal the emotion from her.

"Did he ever physically accost you?" He asked when she was finished. God help him if he had, because promise or no promise, if the asshole had dared to touch her, he was dead.

"No," Abby responded, not knowing she'd just saved the jerk's life. "But it's just kind of creepy the way he won't leave me alone. The anger and name calling is also starting to get to me."

"Anger? Name calling?"

"Yeah," she said. "Now when I turn him down or avoid walking with him, he calls me a bitch, or a tease. Oh, and one time he called me a lesbian, but he used a really derogatory term for it."

"What's his name?" Hotch growled, daydreaming about ripping the guy's throat out. Why did some guys have to be such assholes toward women?

"Oh, I don't think so," Abby said quickly. "I just want your advice on how to handle it; I _don't _want you to find a way to kill him."

"Abby, I want his name so I can have Garcia run a background check; I want to make sure he's not dangerous."

"You promise you're not going to do anything to him?" Abby asked suspiciously.

"I promise I won't do anything to him," Hotch told her. Abby finally gave up the name and he promised to call her in a few days with advice on how to handle things. They disconnected soon after that, and less than a minute later, Hotch strode purposefully into Garcia's lair.

"How can I help you this fine evening, sir?" She asked as she looked up from her many screens.

Hotch sat down in one of the empty chairs and, once he'd gained her promise not to tell Dave or JJ about the problem, filled her in on Abby's situation. Technically he wasn't breaking any of the promises he made to her, he was just letting Garcia in on it so she could run the background check. If she chose to wreck the kid electronically, well, he couldn't be held responsible for that, could he?

As he had expected, Garcia was as pissed off as he was and she ran the background check in record time. Thankfully, nothing in it worried them, but Hotch knew it didn't make him any less dangerous. He thanked Garcia and got up to leave when her voice stopped him.

"Sir, you're not really going to do nothing, are you? I know you promised her you wouldn't go out there, but this is Abby we're talking about," she said. "I mean, I'm going to make this guy wish he had never been electronically born, but I can't inflict any physical damage on him."

"Garcia, the first thing they teach you in law school is how to find a loophole and my promise to Abby is riddled with them," he said as he pulled his cell phone off of his belt. "There is no _way_ I'm going to let her fend for herself with this, I just have to call in the right reinforcements." With that, he left her lair and began dialing a number. Sure, if she ever found out about his plan, Abby would be out for his blood, but it was a risk he was willing to take in order to keep her safe.

* * *

_A/N 2: If anyone has anything they want to see in this story, let me know and I'll try to work it in since some of the upcoming chapters will be more fluid than others._


	13. Chapter 13

_Changes-Chapter 13_

**~_Nominations have opened for the third annual Profiler's Choice Awards for Criminal Minds' fandom!_ Please visit Chit Chat on Author's Corner forum for the nomination ballot, rules and guidelines and category definitions. Please review all of the information and rules before submitting your nomination ballot. Ilovetvalot, Tonnie2001969, and HxChick are NOT eligible for ANY awards.**

**~Thanks to everyone who's still reading and reviewing!**

* * *

Three days later, Abby was walking back to her dorm and she was lost in her thoughts. The biology class she had just come from had been grueling, but she found it much more interesting than she did in high school; maybe it was because the professor was entertaining and he actually knew what he was talking about. Her lab partner was really handsome, so that added to her love of the class. In fact, she was so caught up in daydreaming about the two of them together that she almost didn't notice the two familiar faces coming out of a residence hall, but at the last moment her brain turned back on and she stalked up to them.

"Are you KIDDING me?" She exclaimed loudly to the NCIS agent and the priest who had been looking around, as if they were lost.

"Oh crap," Gibbs muttered under his breath, knowing they were busted. He hoped his traveling companion's pull with God could save them from a scene with the teenager, but he doubted it would.

Father Jimmy decided to play the situation off as if it was no big deal. "Hello Abby, how are you?"

"How am I?" She repeated incredulously. "Seriously? What the hell are you two doing here?"

"Would you believe that I'm out here on NCIS business?" Gibbs asked, already knowing the answer.

"And that I'm here for a religious conference?" Jimmy said, continuing the charade. "And that we happened to meet up by chance and decided to look you up?"

"Well yeah, I might believe that if I was the world's most gullible person if the two of you hadn't just stepped out of Ben Jennings' res hall," Abby said sarcastically. "Come on!" She began walking quickly toward a nearby building.

"Where are we going?" Gibbs asked as he caught up with her.

"My dorm room; if you guys are here for the reason I think you are, then I've been humiliated enough for today and I don't need to add 'screaming at a federal agent and a priest in the middle of the quad' to the list."

They walked into the building, took the elevator up to her floor and walked into her room. She shut the door firmly behind them, opened her laptop and, while she waited for it to boot up, she whirled around and faced her two visitors. "Uncle Aaron sent you, didn't he?" She asked through clenched teeth. Neither man replied right away; instead they both looked around her room. "Really? You're just going to ignore my question?" She asked loudly.

"Okay, you're right," Gibbs finally confessed loudly. "When you called Aaron, he was…concerned about the situation."

"Argh! I just needed advice, I didn't need him to send his goon squad out here!"

"I don't think I've ever been considered part of a 'goon squad' before," Jimmy said amused as he tugged lightly at his collar.

Abby shot a glare at him as she asked, "What did the two of you do?"

"We had a discussion with Ben and let him know it would be in his best interest to quit pursuing you," Gibbs told her as he looked around the girly bedroom. A part of him couldn't help thinking that he could have been visiting his own daughter in a similar place, if only her life hadn't been cut tragically short.

"And Penelope Garcia learned he was catholic, so I came along to give a little bit of extra 'spiritual encouragement'," Jimmy said, trying to bite back a smile as he remembered how the kid had paled and cowered in front of them. After some of the threats Gibbs had laid down, he doubted the guy would ever even _look _in Abby's direction again.

Abby opened her mouth to say something, but at that moment her laptop dinged and let her know it had finished booting up. She quickly pulled up the Skype program and was connected with her uncle.

"Hi Abby, what's up?" He asked as he looked up from a file. When he did, he saw an expression of blazing anger on the teen's face and his two cohorts in the background.

"I can't believe you did this!" She yelled. "I specifically asked you not to tell anyone about my problem and you did anyway! Garcia told me you couldn't keep a secret to save your life and now I know what she meant!"

"First off, you asked me not to tell your parents and I didn't. Second of all, Garcia is one of the biggest gossips in this office, second only to your father, so for her to accuse _anyone _of not keeping a secret is a joke! And third of all, what did you expect me to do? You tried talking to the guy and you tried ignoring him and neither tactic worked, so something else had to be done."

"You really are a lawyer, aren't you?" She retorted. "You knew I wanted you to keep it to yourself, but since I didn't expressly say that, you felt you could tell everyone _but _mom and dad! Besides, all I wanted was advice! You didn't have to send Gibbs and Jimmy across the country to solve my problems. I'm surprised you didn't send Jack too." She saw her uncle squirm when she said that. "You asked him, didn't you?"

Hotch nodded, "He's still in Canada and couldn't there fast enough."

"God Uncle Aaron! Don't you see? I'm THAT girl again! I'm the girl with the crazy protective family. I'm the girl who needs protecting. I'm the girl who can't stand on her own two feet. I really wanted to be different here, but you wrecked that for me!"

"I'm sorry about that Abby, but when it comes to your safety I'll-"

"Hey Hotch; did I hear my daughter's voice in here?" Abby heard her father's confused voice in the background.

"Shit!" She whispered fiercely. "Don't tell him I'm on!"

"Hey!" Gibbs said gruffly as he looked pointedly at the priest.

"I'm sure he's heard much worse from my dad," Abby muttered.

"She's right, I have," Jimmy affirmed.

"What the hell, Hotch? I swear I just heard Gibbs' voice too. What's going on?" Suddenly the screen changed and Abby was looking at her father.

"Hi dad, how's it going?" She said cheerfully, as if she was just calling to say hello.

"What's going on Abby? Is that _Jimmy_ I see? And I know I heard Gibbs somewhere in the background. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine dad," she said with a sigh, knowing the jig was up. He'd learn everything either from her or her uncle and once he did, she knew he'd be pissed.

"Is that true Jimmy?" Dave asked.

The priest nodded. "Agent Gibbs and I came out to help Abby with a small problem and it's been taken care of."

"What problem? What don't I know about?"

"Dave, as much as I'd love to spend the rest of the evening talking to everyone, I have a meeting in twenty minutes and I need to prepare for it." Hotch told him.

"Fine, I'll Skype you back in a few minutes and you'd better pick up," he told his daughter. With that the connection was closed.

"I had such a relaxing afternoon planned," Abby said to herself.

"After we talk your dad down from the ledge, Jimmy and I will take you out for dinner," Gibbs offered.

"Okay," she agreed, even though she was still kind of pissed at the two of them. Sure, her uncle could be persuasive but they were two grown men and they could've turned him down if they had really wanted to.

Just then, the door to the room opened and Abby's roommate walked in. "Hey Abs, wanna go-oh, sorry, I didn't know you had company."

"Hey Jess, these are some family friends from back home. Meet Father Jimmy Davison and Agent Gibbs."

The girl smiled slyly. "A priest, an FBI agent and a college student walk into a dormitory," she said. "It sounds like the beginning of a bad joke."

All of them laughed at that. "Close, but Gibbs isn't a feeb, he's with NCIS."

"Well, it's nice to meet the two of you. Did you come out here to visit Abby?"

"Sort of," Gibbs said evasively.

"They came out to solve my problem with Ben Jennings."

"Oh, thank God," Jessica said, relieved that her friend wouldn't have to put up with the guys advances anymore. "What?" She asked when she saw the look Abby shot her. "He was starting to get really creeping and annoying with the way he just showed up out of nowhere."

"It wasn't _that_ bad," Abby argued as she got looks from both Gibbs and Jimmy.

"Yeah it was," Jessica retorted, "But at least it's over now. Hey! I have a professor who's being an asshole…sorry Father Jimmy…who's being a jerk to me. Can we go over to his office so you can rough him up?"

"Sorry, it doesn't work like that," Gibbs said with a laugh.

"Shucks," Jess said, snapping her fingers. A moment later, they all heard the request from Skype ding on her computer. "You're a popular girl today."

"Yeah, that's my dad who just found out about everything. I'm sure this is going to be a fun conversation," Abby said sarcastically.

"I'll just leave the three of you alone," her roommate said as she headed for the door. "It was cool meeting you guys."

"It was nice meeting you too, Jessica," Jimmy said as she left the small room.

Once Jessica was gone, Abby turned back to her laptop and connected the Skype call.

"Tell me everything," Dave ordered as soon as they were connected. Over the next ten minutes the three of them filled Dave in on the situation and, by the end, he'd gone from worried, to angry, to thankful that his two friends were able to take care of the situation. After that, Dave talked to his daughter alone and read her the riot act for keeping everything a secret from him and JJ and he made her promise to come to them if she had any more problems.

"So how are your classes going?" Dave asked her, once they got past everything that had happened that afternoon.

"They're fine," she told him.

"I'm surprised you can even make it to them, what with all of the parties you attend."

"Hey! I've cut back on going out," she defended herself. "I've been working on striking a balance between fun and studying. Besides, I'm doing volunteer work three nights a week."

"Really? Where?" He asked, assuming it was at a soup kitchen or somewhere similar.

"I'm volunteering in the ER at a local hospital."

"YOU?" He asked incredulously. "You, the person who hates all things medical?"

"I'm trying to face some of my fears," she told him. "Besides, I kind of got used to hospitals after spending so much time at the one in New York last spring."

"Well I'm glad you're slowing down somewhat," he said. "What are your plans for tonight?"

"Gibbs and Jimmy are taking me out for dinner. We're all in the mood for Italian, so we'll probably go to the Olive Garden." She laughed when she saw the look of horror come over her dad's face. "Just kidding, we'll probably go into the city and eat in Little Italy."

"I dare you to try that joke with your grandmother," he said with a smile.

"Are you kidding? She'd probably fly out here just to get me with her wooden spoon for even _suggesting _that the Olive Garden is a real Italian restaurant!"

"You've got that right."

"So how are you and mom doing?" Abby asked, even though she'd talked to both of them the previous night.

"We're doing well," he said and then glanced off-screen. "Actually, I've gotta go Pumpkin; it looks like we have a case and we need to be briefed before we takeoff."

"Okay, I'll let you go. Love ya."

"I love you too, Abby," Dave said.

"Tell mom that I said 'hi' and that I love her," Abby directed.

"I will." And with that, Abby cut the Skype connection and sighed.

"Are you still mad at us?" Jimmy asked from his seat across the small room.

"No…I mean, I'm not thrilled with the two of you, but whatever. No, I just don't like mom and dad being back at work. What if something else happens to them? Mom barely survived being shot six months ago; what if she gets hurt again? And what if something happens to dad? It just sucks knowing how dangerous their jobs are."

"I know it does Abs, but since I work in law enforcement, I can tell you that everyone watches out for everyone else. No one wants to lose a member of their team," Gibbs told her.

There was silence for a minute until Jimmy spoke up. "I don't know about the two of you, but I'm hungry. Let's venture into San Francisco so we can gorge ourselves on pasta."

"Sounds good," Abby said with a smile, but she couldn't shake the feeling of worry for her parents.


	14. Chapter 14

_Changes-Chapter 14_

* * *

The next month was a busy one for all three members of the Rossi family. Dave and JJ had returned to work in early September but they were still trying to get back into the crazy, unpredictable, and hectic schedules that were the norm at the BAU. They also had to readjust to the constant travel, the numerous time zone changes, and the general lack of sleep they got while on cases. It didn't help that the team was busier than ever, as it seemed like every police department in the country was requesting their assistance…well, every department other than the ones in the San Francisco metropolitan area. Dave had been ready to pounce on a case in his daughter's college town ever since she'd left for school and now that he hadn't seen her in two months, he really wanted an excuse to visit her. Sure, he and his wife could simply board a plane and take a long weekend in San Francisco, but he knew Abby would see that as hovering over her and it wouldn't sit well with her. If a case just _happened _to bring them out there, then he could hide behind the shield of work.

JJ missed their daughter every bit as much as her husband, but she had to admit that it was nice to be able to be affectionate with Dave anywhere in the house, at any time, and not have to worry about their teenager walking in on them. That was the only thing she liked about having her daughter three thousand miles away. She knew she would miss Abby, but she never thought she would miss her as much as she did. She missed the general noise her daughter made in the house, she missed talking to her before she went to bed, she missed watching crazy and raunchy movies with her, and she missed going places as a family. She wanted her daughter to come home but she knew it wasn't going to happen so she pushed through her separation anxiety. It helped that she was busier than ever, both with her career and her personal life.

At the beginning of October, Dave and JJ began the interview process for potential surrogates to carry their child. Since the woman would be in complete charge of their baby's well-being for nine months, they were obviously very picky and it had become an arduous process. They had narrowed a list of over one hundred down to twelve, but they knew it would be difficult to pick the right one. Thankfully, they were not in a huge rush and they could take their time in deciding.

Abby was also busy during this time. While she had attended many parties since moving to Berkeley, she had begun to try and balance her life a bit better. She still went out on Saturday nights, but she had also begun hanging out with smaller groups of friends during the week. She had met people through her classes and volunteer work at the hospital and many times she had people over to her room both to study and to socialize. Her roommate Jessica frequently joined them and they had begun a 'wine Wednesday' tradition that involved wine and movies as a mid-week break. One of her friends, Lindsey, had a car so a bunch of them had begun to take short weekend trips as well and it was fun exploring the California countryside. It was sometimes difficult balancing her social life with her studies, but she was managing fairly well so far.

xxxxxxxxxx

As he politely smiled and signed yet another book, inside Dave was nearing his breaking point. The book he'd been working on and editing throughout his family's ordeal the previous spring had finally been published and he was in the middle of a book tour. Because he'd just re-started as a full member of the BAU, he didn't have as much pull for taking weeks of annual leave at a time, so his publisher had worked with the Bureau and they had agreed to a weekend tour. That meant that every Friday, he woke up in a different town and spent the weekend reading passages and signing his books at various bookstores. Between that, the crazy case load at the BAU and his age, he could feel the exhaustion eating away at him.

Thankfully his wife was with him on this tour and all he had to do was look at her to gain strength and patience. They were currently in Los Angeles, California and he couldn't get out of the state fast enough. Sure, the Pacific coast was pretty enough and there was always something to do, but it seemed that all of the cases he'd worked in the state had always been the craziest, the most violent and, as a result, he always wondered what horrors could be taking place nearby. It was one of the many reasons he hadn't wanted Abby to attend UC Berkeley.

"I just love your books," a woman said from above him as she slid his latest work toward him. "What was Charles Manson really like?"

"Scary," Dave responded without looking up; he'd signed over a hundred books and he just didn't have it in him to be friendly anymore. They'd come for an autograph and that's what they would get. "What name would you like on the autograph?"

"Jean Kendal," she said. He slid the book back to her and sighed, counting the seconds until the signing was over.

"Steve Fetterly," the next person said as he'd handed him his copy of the book. "Dude, did you really shoot that guy in Alaska to keep him from killing another guy?"

"I did," he said tightly.

"How'd you know it wouldn't kill him?"

"I'm an expert marksman," he bit out as he slid the book back. The guy walked away and Dave took a drink of water before refocusing. The next person slid their book across to him without a word.

"Who should I make this out to?" He asked as he opened it, poised to start writing.

"Abigail Rossi," a familiar voice said. Upon hearing it, Dave's head snapped up and he found himself looking at his daughter.

"Abby!" He exclaimed as he jumped up from his chair. He dashed around the table and pulled her into a bone crushing hug. He hadn't seen her since early September and it felt good to have her in his arms. "What are you doing here? I thought you couldn't make it." Of course when they learned they would be in the same state as their daughter, he and JJ had invited her to come down to LA but she'd turned them down, citing studying needs.

"Can't. Breathe." She grunted as he hugged her.

"Shit, sorry," Dave said as he released her.

"Anyway, the prof for my Friday class emailed all of us last night to let us know he was cancelling class today, so I jumped on an early flight to get down here. Did I surprise you?"

"Hell yes you did," her dad told her as he pulled her into another hug. "Does your mother know you're here?"

"Nope, it was a spur of the moment thing and I wanted to surprise you both. Where is she?" Suddenly, there was a loud squeal and Abby was pulled from her father's embrace and into her mother's.

"You're here!" JJ said excitedly. "I thought you couldn't make it."

"My Friday class was cancelled, so I hopped on a flight," Abby told her. "I used the credit card you gave me; is that okay? I know it's kind of stupid since I'm coming home for Thanksgiving in a month, but I really wanted to see you guys."

"It's _fine_," JJ reassured her as she reluctantly released her. "How long can you stay?"

"I'm flying out on Sunday afternoon."

"Perfect," her mom said with a smile. "We have the rest of the afternoon free today and I was planning on spending it lying on the beach. Are you in? Our hotel is right on the shores of the Pacific."

"That sounds great," Abby told her as her dad wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "Is it okay if I stay with both of you? If not, I can always bunk with Becca in her dorm room at UCLA."

"You're staying with us," her father told her firmly. "We don't have a suite, but the room is large and it has two queen sized beds. There's more than enough room for you."

"The California branch of your dad's publishing company is throwing a party for him tonight, and you'll come with us," JJ said, as though it was a given. "And then tomorrow morning he has a reading and signing at another bookstore. After that we're free until we leave on Sunday, so we'll get to do some sightseeing tomorrow afternoon and evening."

"I can't wait," she said, happy to be with her parents again. While she had gotten over her initial homesickness, she'd missed her parents and the safety they represented. "But I didn't bring anything to wear for a party. Why don't I just stay back at the hotel tonight?"

"Nothing doing," Dave said. "If I can't stay behind, you're not staying behind. Besides, I'm sure we can find a nice dress shop between here and the hotel."

"Okay, I'll come," the teen said hesitantly. As she left the bookstore with her parents, she flashed back to the book signing she had attended in New York a few years ago…right after that, her father had left them for awhile and she was worried something similar might happen this time. She fervently prayed everything would go smoothly that evening.

* * *

_Don't forget to submit your nominations for the third annual Profiler's Choice Awards! Visit the Chit Chat on Author's Corner forum to get the lowdown on the rules and categories._


	15. Chapter 15

_Changes-Chapter 15_

**~Don't forget to nominate your favorite authors and stories for the 2012 Profiler's Choice Awards! The rules and ballot can be found at the Chit Chat on Author's Corner forum.**

* * *

"Hey Pumpkin, are you enjoying yourself?" Dave asked his daughter, who was standing near a table and holding a glass of soda. He could tell she wasn't, he could tell she was bored nearly to tears but was trying to be nice about it.

"Yeah, I'm having a great time," she lied. She knew this book tour was important to her dad and, therefore, so was the party.

"It sure looks like you are," he remarked dryly as he took a sip of his scotch. "Where's your mom?"

"She's over there talking to some author she really likes."

"Speaking of well liked authors," Dave said as he smiled and motioned at someone. "I'd like you to meet someone." An older woman came up to Dave and stood next to him. She looked vaguely familiar but Abby couldn't place her.

"Abby meet Amy Yard; Amy, this is my daughter Abby, she's a big fan of yours."

"Oh my gosh, it is such a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Yard," Abby gushed as she shook the woman's hand. "I've read every single one of your books!" Amy Yard was a popular author of teen chick lit and Abby had been addicted to her books while in high school.

"It's nice to meet you too, Abby," the famous authoress told her. "All of us in the publishing world have curious about the two women who were able to tame your father's wild ways," She winked when she said this and Abby just laughed.

"Abby's a freshman at UC Berkeley," Dave said proudly. "She flew down here to spend the weekend with us."

"That's nice," Amy said warmly. "So are you planning on a career in law enforcement like your parents?"

"Hell no!" Dave exclaimed before his daughter could say anything. "She's going to do something that is nice and safe."

"I'm majoring in poli sci and I plan to use it as a pre-law major," Abby said absently, still in awe that one of her favorite authors was standing in front of her. "I love the characters in your books; I always felt like they were talking to me, that they understood what I was going through when I was growing up. Where did you get your inspiration for them?"

"I have three daughters, so my inspiration came from real life," she said.

"Well, your books are fantastic. Even though they're young adult fiction, I still buy every single one on their release dates," Abby gushed.

"You should be flattered," Dave muttered to his fellow author, "She's never raved about any of my books like this and I even dedicated the last one to her."

"Yeah, but your books usually involve horrific crimes and murder," Abby retorted good-naturedly. "I really hope I can never relate to yours like I do Ms. Yard's."

The woman smiled, "I have a new book coming out next month; I'll get your address from your father and send you an advanced copy when I get back to New York."

"Ohmigod, that would be awesome!" Abby said excitedly. "Thank you _so _much!" At that moment, the author saw someone she needed to talk to so she said goodbye to Dave and Abby and left them.

"I'm so glad I brought you and your mother here," he said sarcastically. "Between her drooling over Tom Larson and your fawning over Amy Yard, I just feel so loved."

"Oh dad, you'll always be my favorite author," Abby said playfully as she gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I've got to hit the ladies room; do you know where it is?" Her dad pointed towards the back of the large banquet room and she made her way over there.

It was a large restroom and Abby chose a stall, took care of business and then smoothed out her dress. She was just about to leave the compartment when she heard a group of women come in and they were talking about her dad.

"God, I swear David Rossi gets better looking with age," one of the women said dreamily. "Too bad he's married and has a kid."

"Speaking of which, is he _trying _to sabotage his entire writing career?" Another woman asked. "Here we are trying to sell him as a man of mystery…a rugged, good looking man who is married to his career and doesn't do anything but chase down criminals and now he's suddenly a tamed family man? What the hell is wrong with him?"

Abby put a hand up to her mouth to stop herself from gasping; were she and her mom really ruining her dad's writing career? She didn't really follow the reviews and articles about him as a writer, mostly because he didn't want her to, but could it be true?

"Did you read his latest book?" Woman number two continued as she studied her reflection in the mirror. "He's much more touchy-feely and sensitive in his writing. Before he became a family man, his writing was grittier, edgier, and he told it like it was. He was never afraid to say 'This guy was a scumbag and he deserved the death penalty and more.' Now he's all about looking into their childhoods and shit like that. The blunt, slightly asshole David Rossi needs to return and he needs to do it quickly before he loses his entire audience."

Woman number one took a puff of her cigarette and then said, "Besides, who wants to read a book about human monsters that was written by a guy with a wife and kid at home? I sure as hell don't! I want to read about it from a whiskey swilling man's man…you know, like one of those 1950's private detectives that say 'doll' a lot and wear a trench coat and hat. No one wants to hear about Dahmer, Manson or Bundy from a guy who goes home and eats dinner with his family and then watches 'Dancing with the Stars' with them."

"And every time he brings them on a tour or to a function where there's press, Sam and Jon die a little inside." Sam was Dave's agent and Jon was the head of the publishing company. "I thought Jon was going to have an aneurism when he dedicated this latest book to his daughter."

"Can you blame them?" Woman number three asked. "They spent years building the 'David Rossi Image' and he blows it every time he talks about them to the press and every time he brings them to these kinds of things. Remember his interview on NPR last month? He actually told the listeners that he and his wife were thinking about having another baby!"

"I know," number two said as she leaned in close to the mirror to apply some mascara. "I thought he had come to his senses a few years ago when he left them, but he went back after only a couple of weeks. I wonder what she had on him?"

Number one shrugged, "I heard he went back to them because he was worried she'd take him to court. Sure, she wasn't married to him at the time, but she had his kid and she could've taken a ton of his money in child support."

Abby's head was spinning and she had to keep reminding herself that what the woman had said wasn't true; her dad had reassured her hundreds of times that he came back because he wanted to, because he loved them and she trusted his words.

"Well, we'd better go back out there so we can make small-talk with the wife and kid; maybe if we can keep them separated, the few members of the press who are here won't write about them."

With that the three women left the bathroom and Abby left the stall she'd been hiding in. When she got to the counter, she leaned on it heavily and took a few deep breaths. Was she really hurting her dad's writing career? Was she really causing him to lose readers? She had always been flattered when he mentioned her in an interview, but now she just felt sick. She took a few more breaths and then tried to paste a neutral expression on her face. She had to go back out there and pretend everything was okay and since both of her parents were human lie detectors, it was going to be difficult.

Sure enough, she found her mother soon after she left the ladies room and the first thing out of her mouth was, "Are you okay?"

Damn, so much for trying to act normal. "Yeah, I'm just starting to get a headache," she lied.

"Okay," Dave said as he strolled up to them. "We've spent two hours at this dog and pony show, I think we can leave now."

"But Dave, this is a party thrown in your honor," JJ reminded him. "It would be rude to leave this early." Even as she said the words, all JJ could do was imagine herself back at their hotel, clad in a t-shirt and pajama pants and watching a movie with her daughter and husband but she knew the publicity was good for Dave's new book.

"Yeah dad, we should stay for awhile longer so you can schmooze with everyone." Abby's heart wasn't in it, but she didn't want her father's career and reputation to take any more hits.

Dave looked closely at his daughter, "What's with you?"

"Headache," she responded and Dave immediately knew she was lying to him. In the years he'd known her, he'd picked up on her headache 'tells.' When it was just beginning, she would unconsciously play with her hair on the side of the head that was hurting her, and if it was a bad one, she would rub her head and she wasn't doing either at the moment. While he wanted to question her about it, he wanted to leave the banquet even more, so he let it go.

"Pumpkin, this was just an excuse for the publishing house to get all of their most famous authors under one roof so they can pimp the occasion to the press. Trust me, no one is going to care if I leave right now," he told her. "Besides, these dinky hors d'oeuvres aren't doing anything to fill me up. How about we stop for burgers and fries on the way back to the hotel?"

Abby nodded enthusiastically, but JJ had other plans. "How about we stop and get some healthier food instead? We're in California, I'm sure there's a salad or wrap place that's open late."

Dave sighed, "Your mom has us eating healthier," he told his daughter with a disgusted look on his face. "All we have at the house is rabbit food and she doesn't let me eat anything good when we go out." His lip popped out in a slight pout at the end and JJ and Abby could barely keep from laughing.

"Trust me Dave, you won't die from incorporating more vegetables into your diet; in fact, it will probably make you live longer."

"Whatever," he grumbled as the three of them made their way out to the waiting limo. Once they were inside of it, Abby began to relax but she couldn't shake what she'd overheard in the ladies room and she knew she had to do something about it.


	16. Chapter 16

_Changes-Chapter 16_

**~Thanks to everyone who has been reviewing this story, both signed authors and anonymous reviewers, the reviews really mean a lot to me. **

* * *

As Abby turned off the shower the next morning, she took a few minutes to luxuriate in the lavish, private bathroom. It felt wonderful to have the room to herself; there wasn't a line of people waiting for their turn under the spigot, the showerhead wasn't a cheap, disgusting one that sprayed air more than it did water and she didn't have to wear flip-flops while she cleaned herself in order to avoid the revolting, disease ridden floor. In a word, the private bathroom was heaven and she planned on staying in there as long as possible. What she really wanted to do was take a long bath later that night but, if her plan worked, she'd be back at Berkeley before the sun set.

While the private bathroom was nice, the entire mini-vacation had so much more to offer. Since they were staying right on the beach at an expensive and luxurious hotel, they had many amenities, including surfboard availability for their guests. When Abby had heard about that, she'd been ecstatic. She had learned to surf in Hawaii while they had vacationed there for her parent's wedding and she had fallen in love with it. She had hoped she would get a chance to do it quite a bit now that she was living in San Francisco, but since she didn't have a car, she had no way to transport her surfboard to and from the beach, so she hadn't done it in years. That morning, she'd awakened early and saw awesome waves washing up on the beach and she had taken advantage of them. Thankfully the hotel had lifeguards for their private beach, otherwise she wouldn't have been able to go out since she wasn't going to do it alone and she hadn't wanted wanted to wake her parents so early.

That was the other great part of the trip; her parents. While she had longed for the independence and self-sufficiency of college life, she missed her parents and family terribly. She missed the safety and security they represented and she missed not having people nearby who really knew her. Sure, she had gotten over most of her homesickness and she'd made a bunch of friends, but there was something to be said for having your parents within driving distance and she did not have that. Facebook and Skype kept them connected but it was really nice to have them nearby, even if it was just for a weekend.

She was just about to step out from behind the shower curtain when a voice said, "Did you save any hot water for the rest of the hotel guests?"

"Jesus Christ, mom!" She exclaimed from the other side of the curtain. "What are you doing in here?"

"I had to pee and since you were fairly hidden and the toilet was in it's own separate little room, I didn't think it would be a big deal. Unfortunately, the sink is out here."

"Wow, and here I was thinking how nice it was to not be sharing a bathroom," the teen said wryly.

"I don't know if you remember, but we used to share a MUCH smaller bathroom than this in the apartment. I'm sorry if I ruined your fantasy, but I guess my old habits came back quicker than I thought they would," JJ told her. "As long as you're done, do you mind if I start getting ready in here? I need my curling iron and hair dryer." JJ had showered earlier in the morning while Abby had been out surfing.

"Sure," she said as she reached her hand out and grabbed her towel. "I'll get dressed out in the room."

"That's fine," JJ told her as she plugged the hairdryer into the wall. "Your dad couldn't get a wi-fi signal in the room, so he went down to the lobby to work for a little while.

Abby nodded, went into the main room and quickly dressed in jeans and a short-sleeved, pink shirt. She went back into the bathroom just as her mother shut off the hairdryer and she reached for it before the older woman could unplug it. As she grabbed her hairbrush, she said as nonchalantly as she could, "I think I might grab a flight back to San Francisco this morning instead of tomorrow; I have more studying than I thought and I should probably get back." She could see her mother's stunned and confused look in the mirror, so she turned the dryer on before she could ask her any questions.

She had decided the previous night that it would be better for her dad if she went back to school early. Although she was completely caught up in her studies, it was the most plausible excuse she could use and she wanted to leave that morning because her dad had another signing in the afternoon and she didn't want to inadvertently interfere with it. She hoped they would buy the story.

As soon as she shut off the hairdryer, JJ pounced on her with questions. "I thought we were going to spend the day together? You said yesterday that you were caught up in your studies, so why the sudden turnaround?"

Crap, she'd forgotten she'd told her parents that. "I took a look at one of my syllabi last night and I forgot about an upcoming test this week and my books are all back in my dorm room."

JJ studied her intently for a moment. "You are _so_ full of shit," she finally said and Abby's jaw dropped; she expected that kind of reaction from her father, but not her mother!

"Excuse me?" Abby asked huffily.

"After 18 years, why do you think you can lie to me? Sure, I'm not a profiler like your dad, but I've always been able to tell when you're being less than truthful with me and right now you're lying through your pearly white teeth."

"I want to go back early," Abby said defensively. "Just let it go, mom. Okay?"

"What do you think the odds are that _that _will happen?" JJ asked, as she quirked one eyebrow.

Abby snorted, "You've been with dad too long; you've picked up on his 'raised eyebrow' stare."

"Yeah, well, it works, and don't think you're going to distract me from finding out why you want to leave early," she said. "Did something happen last night? You were awfully quiet when we left; did some guy hit on you? Get grabby with you?"

"No, I developed a headache; it's not a big whoop."

"And that's another lie," JJ said with a sigh. "Come on Abby, I thought we had a better relationship than this."

"Fine," the teen said in defeat. "Look mom, I'll tell you what happened, but you have to promise not to tell dad about it. Okay?"

"How about you tell me and I'll decide if he needs to know?" JJ responded, using a response Abby had heard dozens of times throughout her high school years.

"Fine," she sighed. "Last night I was in a stall in the ladies room and a group of women from dad's publishing firm came in and they…they were talking about how you and I are ruining dad's career. They said we were ruining his image of a bachelor agent saving the world and swilling scotch while doing it. They said his writing is going downhill because of us and that every time he mentions us in interviews or brings us on book tours, he loses readers. They said that dad's agent and the head of the publishing company almost had aneurisms when he decided to dedicate his latest book to me. And they said…never mind."

"What? What else did they talk about?" JJ asked gently sat down on the bathroom counter so she could face her daughter.

"They said that dad briefly came to his senses when he left us that summer but made a mistake in coming back to us. They all believed it was because he didn't want to have to pay a ton of child support," she said.

"Aw honey, I'm sorry that happened to you. I'd say you'll get used to it, but I never have," her mom said sympathetically.

"People have said that stuff around you too?" Abby asked, astonished.

JJ nodded sadly. "Yes, I've heard it all from the lackeys in your dad's publishing company and by the people who work for Sam and I can't really blame them, they're looking out for your dad's best interests. Why do you think I let your dad fend for himself during the actual 'signing' part of his book signings? Reps from both Sam's office and the publisher have suggested numerous times that if I'm going to come along on the trips, I should at least make myself scarce by looking around the bookstores while he's signing autographs. It's just part of that world. I'm sorry you were dragged into it, though."

Abby shrugged, "That's why I thought it would be best if I left early; I don't want to hurt his career more than I already have." She paused and thought for a second. "Does dad know what they've said to, and about, you?"

"No," her mom told her, shaking her head. "He would, as you say, 'lose his shit' if he knew."

"Your goddamned right I would!" Dave growled as he stood in the doorway of the bathroom. JJ just closed her eyes both in defeat and in preparation for what was to come. Things had definitely gone from bad to worse.

* * *

_Don't forget to submit your nominations for the third annual Profiler's Choice Awards! Visit the Chit Chat on Author's Corner forum to get the lowdown on the rules and categories._


	17. Chapter 17

_Changes-Chapter 17_

**~Don't forget to nominate your favorite authors and stories for the 3rd Annual Profiler's Choice Awards! Information, rules and the nomination form can be found at the Chit Chat on Author's Corner forum.**

* * *

"How much did you hear, Dave?" JJ asked. Maybe it wasn't as bad as she thought, maybe he'd just heard the tail end of the conversation. Yeah, and maybe a she'd see some pigs fly by the window.

"I walked into the room and heard Abby say she wanted to leave today instead of tomorrow," he told his wife and then turned to his daughter. "By the way, that's not happening."

"Dad-" Abby started, but Dave shook his head and interrupted her.

"No, you two have had plenty of time to talk, now it's my turn. I want to clear up a few things before we discuss the fact that you two were planning on keeping this from me!" He took a deep breath and tried to reign in his anger; he was angry, but mostly he was angry at his publisher and agent and he didn't want his girls to think his ire was because of them.

"First, I don't care if I lose every single one of my readers, I will NEVER deny that I have a family and I WON'T hide both of you away as though you're a couple of dirty secrets."

"No one is saying you should, you just don't have to talk about us as much as you do," JJ said.

"JJ, you're my wife and I love you, but shut up," he said. "I'll fucking quit the business before I censor myself, especially when it comes to you two."

"Dad, it's not a big deal," Abby said. "If you want me to stay, I can just make myself scarce while you're at your book signing this afternoon.

Dave ran an irritated hand through his hair as he tried to keep his temper in check. "You're going to be by my side the entire time at that book store, got it? You and your mother both! In fact, you're both going to be next to me at the table while I sign the goddamn autographs!"

"There's no need to shout, Dave," JJ said quietly.

He just glared at her for a moment before he continued his tirade. "Second, I don't think my writing is suffering and neither do most reviewers. Even if it was, it wouldn't be either of your faults. Am I more distracted now than I have been with other books? Sure, but that comes with being part of a family and these types of 'distractions' are great. Yeah, I wrote some of my best work before we became a family, but I was also miserable and alone and I NEVER want to go back to that," he said forcefully. "The hell of it is, the image that was painted of me wasn't too far off of the mark; I was a scotch swilling bachelor, but I was also a borderline alcoholic, I was hollow from all that I had seen, and I don't want to think where I would be today if I hadn't found the two of you. Trust me, my writing and image would be much worse if I was still alone."

"Dave-" JJ tried breaking in, but he wouldn't let her.

"Uh-uh, still my turn," he told her. "Third, I'm switching publishers and agents as soon as this book tour is done. The fact that they've said this kind of shit to your face in the past is bad enough," he pointed at his wife, "but spreading rumors that I only came back to avoid paying child support? I won't have people saying that about me, as a father, or about Abby." He turned to Abby now. "You know that's not the reason I came back, right Pumpkin? You know I came back because I love you and your mom and I wanted us to be a family, right?"

Abby looked at him like he was crazy. "Of course I know that," she told him. "I got past that a long time ago." He wanted to comment on that, since he knew she still had a ton of abandonment issues, but he knew this was neither the time, nor place for it. "But dad, you don't have to change everything just because someone hurt my feelings-"

"This is WAY beyond them hurting your feelings Abby, this is about a systematic campaign to hide you and your mother from my public life and I won't have it. End of discussion," he ordered firmly as he left the small bathroom and went back into the main hotel room. He was amazed when Abby followed a moment later and kept arguing with him.

"No," she said just as firmly, "It's not 'end of discussion,' I'm not fifteen years old anymore, you can't just tell me the discussion is over and expect me to shut up."

"Like that ever worked even when you _were_ younger," Dave muttered, thinking about all of the times she had been grounded because of backtalk.

Abby took a deep breath. "Look, you gave up a ton for me already; you cut back your hours with the BAU, you stayed behind with me while the team travelled and you worked from home a lot and I appreciate it, but I don't want to wreck any more of your career than I already have. Your writing is something that I haven't affected too much and I want to keep it that way!"

Dave just shook his head in frustration. "You know, for someone who is supposedly very smart, you say some reallydumb things!" JJ had a slightly amused look on her face while Abby looked insulted. "I _wanted _ to do those things, you didn't force me to do them! I cut back at the Bureau because I wanted to be a father more than I wanted to be an agent and I'll do the same thing for our next kid! And if I don't take action against Jon and Sam, it will be as if I'm in agreement with what they're doing."

"But _I_ know you're not and _mom _knows you're not, so why make a big deal about it?"

"Someday, when you have a husband and kids, you'll understand why I'm doing this," he told her and it seemed to shut her up a little. "What I'd really like to talk about is the fact that both of you were going to keep this from me. In fact, it seems as if you've been keeping this from me for some time, haven't you Jennifer?"

JJ squirmed a little, "It's not like it's something I think about every day, Dave…just when I go with you to literary events."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I didn't want to stress you out; I'm a big girl and I can deal with assholes…hell, I can deal with them better than you can," she told him and Abby snorted as she tried to hold back laughter.

"Maybe you can, but you shouldn't have to and, from now on, I want to know if and when these things happen, capisce?" He looked at both women and they nodded but he didn't like the way his wife still wouldn't meet his eyes. "What aren't you telling me, Jen?"

"It's not a big deal honey," she told him.

"I'll be the judge of that. Spill," he ordered.

JJ took a deep breath. "When Abby was five years old, you did a book signing at the Georgetown bookstore."

He nodded, "Throughout the whole thing, I kept flashing back to memories of the two of us, since that's where we first met."

She smiled briefly, but it faded quickly. "Anyway, I went to one and I had Abby with me…I guess I was going to see if you had any interest in being a father, but Sam was near the door and he recognized me; I guess he remembered me from the few dinners we had with him when we were together."

"Go on," he said as a bad feeling grew in the pit of his stomach.

"He stopped me as I walked in," she told him. "He had done the math in his head and he realized Abby was your daughter and he told me you were better off not knowing about her. He said that an absent father image wouldn't play well in the press, nor would the Bureau look favorably upon it. He also mentioned that you were quite happy with Suzette and you didn't need any more drama in your life. He gave me his card and told me to contact him at a later date and he would see about arranging some sort of child support payment system. Abby and I left and I never contacted him...or you."

"I remember that," Abby said. "You made me wear a dress and I got mad that we left before we could look at the books."

"You mean to tell me that if it hadn't been for Sam, I might have learned about Abby when she was five instead of when she was fifteen?" He asked lethally and his eyes narrowed when JJ nodded. "That's fucking it! When I'm done with him, he won't be able to represent anyone in the literary world ever again."

"Dave-"

"JJ, I'm going to do this," he said. "It's what a man does. Why don't the two of you go down to the restaurant and have some breakfast? I'll be down in a little while."

"All right Dave," his wife responded. "Just don't actually kill him, okay? The paperwork will be a bitch to fill out."

"I promise he'll still be breathing when I'm through with him, but that's about it."

"I guess that's all I can ask for," JJ told him. She and Abby finished getting ready and then left the hotel room. As they made their way to the elevator, they could hear Dave yelling on the phone in their room.

xxxxxxxxxx

The rest of the trip went by quickly, but the members of the Rossi family had fun. After the book signing, which Dave was contractually required to attend, they spent the rest of Saturday as tourists and they drove through Hollywood and stopped at many places along the famed boulevard. They also drove through Beverly Hills and gaped at the large, opulent houses and they ended their day at a nice restaurant on the Pacific Coast Highway.

On Sunday, they all arrived at the airport together, since their flights were fairly close together. Once they were through security, they said their goodbyes as Abby's flight was on the opposite end of the terminal from her parents.

"It's so weird not having you flying with us," JJ remarked as she hugged her daughter. "We'll see you at Thanksgiving though."

"Yeah, it's in less than a month," Abby said as her mom released her from the tight embrace. JJ's eyes were bright with unshed tears but Abby's remained dry.

"You could call us more," Dave said gruffly as he pulled her into a hug. "I shouldn't have to hear from Gibbs and Jimmy that you're having trouble with a guy. You might also try partying less and studying more."

Abby rolled her eyes, but thankfully Dave couldn't see her expression. "Okay dad."

"We love you," he said as she pulled away from him.

"I love you both too," she said and with that, they went their separate ways. As she sat in the airport chairs, Abby finally teared up a little; no matter how much she had grown to like her life at UC Berkeley, she missed her parents and her home in DC.


	18. Chapter 18

_Changes-Chapter 18_

**~Don't forget to vote in the third annual Profiler's Choice Awards! Ballots and rules can be found at the Chit Chat on Author's Corner forum.**

**~Thanks to everyone who is still reading and reviewing this story. Drop me a PM or review to let me know what you think about the story so far!**

* * *

Abby stifled yet another large yawn as she sat in the auditorium and listened to her History 101 professor drone on and on about the Revolutionary War. She pretended to take notes on her laptop, but she was actually surfing the internet because, really? Who cared about what happened over 200 years ago? Plus, she had bigger worries on her mind…actually one main worry and it had to do with her activities from the previous night.

Her attention was pulled away from her friends' status updates and the lecture when she saw the Facebook chat box pop up in the lower right hand corner of her computer screen. Damn, it was like her mother had ESP! Paling slightly, Abby wondered if her parents had already found out about what had happened the previous night. Sure, she hadn't told them, but with all of their contacts they might know about it already. Taking a deep breath, she opened the chat window and was relieved that her mother was just checking in on her.

**JJareau**: Hey sweetie, I saw your status update. You're not feeling well?

**Abby Rossi**: I'm fine; it's just a sinus infection.

**JJareau**: Another one? That's your third one since you started school; I want you to see a doctor today.

**Abby Rossi**: I already did. I went to the student health center and they gave me some antibiotics for it…again.

**JJareau**: That's good, but I want you to see Dr. Heston when you're home for Christmas break...hey, I'm in your dad's office and he just got back from a meeting and he's logged into his computer. Do you mind if I add him to this chat?

**Abby Rossi**: Okay.

**DRossi**: Hey Pumpkin; you're not feeling well?

**Abby Rossi**: Hi dad…no, I have another stupid sinus infection but I've already seen a doctor and I've gotten antibiotics for it.

**DRossi**: I want you to visit your doctor when you're home for Christmas break; maybe he can figure out how to fix your sinus problems.

**Abby Rossi**: Mom's way ahead of you, in fact, she's probably already set up an appointment for me…right mom?

**JJareau**: I don't know what you are talking about but you might not want to make any plans on December 18th at 200pm.

**Abby Rossi**: Lol! I really am fine guys; Nonna overnight rushed a care package to me. She managed to ship a batch of her chicken soup to me, using dry ice, and she included her homemade lemon bars and some other goodies. That should get me through _this _sinus infection.

"Well I'm a horrible mother," JJ told her husband from her seat on the sofa in his office. "_I _should've sent a care package too! Hell, we haven't sent her _anything_ this semester."

"It's fine, Jen," Dave tried to reassure her. "My mother lives for this kind of thing. Besides, do you even know how to make chicken soup?"

JJ glared at him as she typed, "My cooking skills have improved and you know it." Dave kept silent because, while her healthy, tofu, green stuff cooking had improved, her comfort food cooking was still awful.

**JJareau**: I'm glad your grandmother is helping you, honey…your dad and I had better get going, we each have piles of paperwork to finish before we can leave tonight.

Abby saw this as her way to tell her parents about what had happened the previous night. Sure, it was a cowardly way to do it, but she did NOT want the hassle of a tag-team lecture over the phone. Heck, if she wasn't worried about Garcia finding it on her own and telling them, she would keep the previous night's events a closely guarded secret until the day she died.

**Abby Rossi**: Actually…I have to tell you something…

"Do we even want to know?" Dave asked his wife. "She's not doing it over the phone and, after this long of a pause, it's got to be pretty big."

"Just give her a minute, Dave," JJ instructed as she waited for her daughter to actually tell them her news. After 2 minutes of silence, she nodded at her husband.

**DRossi**: You know you actually have to type out the words, don't you Pumpkin? We can't read your mind.

Abby nearly snorted out loud when she read her dad's message; because of his world-class profiling skills, it sure as hell had seemed as though he could read her mind when she was younger. Taking a deep breath, she began to type.

**Abby Rossi**: So…I got arrested last night. It's not a huge deal, I was out within three hours and they're not pressing charges so I just wanted to let you know so you didn't find out from someone else.

There was nothing from her parent's end of the chat and that made Abby more nervous than if they had both, simultaneously began laying into her. She understood why they weren't reacting when she felt her cell phone vibrate in her pocket. She sent it to voicemail and got an immediate reaction on Facebook.

**DRossi**: You answer your phone, young lady!

**Abby Rossi**: I can't, I'm in class.

**JJareau**: You've been chatting with us while you're supposed to be paying attention in class?

**Abby Rossi**: It's not a big deal, it's just History 101.

**DRossi**: When does it end?

**Abby Rossi**: In about 15 minutes.

**DRossi**: As soon as your class is finished, you march yourself to your dorm room and you call us via Skype. If we don't hear from you within 30 minutes, your mother and I are going to get on a plane and come talk to you in person. Capisce?

**Abby Rossi**: I get it dad, but again, it's not a big deal.

**DRossi**: You were ARRESTED and spent time in jail last night; I would say it's a VERY big deal! 30 minutes, Abby, not one minute more. Now close Facebook and pay attention to your professor!

Abby did as she was told, but she couldn't focus too much on the boring lecture. No, she had to think of a way to calm her parents down even though she knew that would probably never happen.

Meanwhile, at the BAU offices, Dave was trying to contain his anger while JJ was attempting to get some information about her daughter's arrest.

"Fucking arrested," Dave said loudly. "I knew that if she went to that damn school she would change, but I never imagined she'd be arrested!"

"Take it easy, Dave," JJ said as she dialed a number on her cell phone.

"Take it easy?" He repeated incredulously. "TAKE IT EASY? Are you fucking kidding me? Our daughter spent part of last night in JAIL, Jen! How in the HELL am I supposed to take it easy?" At that moment, Hotch stepped into Dave's office.

"I'm sorry," he said with deceptive calmness that masked his anger. "Did I just hear you say that my niece was arrested last night?"

"Yeah, and we have no goddamned idea why!" Dave told him. "She's going to video chat with us after her class ends."

"So less than three months after leaving DC, she already has a record?" Hotch roared.

"Calm down guys," JJ said as she dialed Garcia's lair. "I'm going to try to figure out what happened." She almost texted her daughter to give her a head's up that her overprotective pseudo-uncle was now involved, but she wasn't feeling particularly charitable towards her at the moment so she decided to let her be surprised by the turn of events.

"What can I do for you, Cupcake?" Garcia asked in greeting. "Please tell me you want to try that new salad place for lunch. I hear they have-"

"Pen, I need you to find a mug shot and police report for me. They're from last night, so I don't know if they'll be in the system yet."

"No problem, Jayje, I can find anything; I just need the person's name and the city of the arrest."

"The name is Abigail Rossi and she was arrested in San Francisco last night." With that, JJ held the phone away from her ear and Garcia's screeches could be heard by all of the occupants of the room. "I know Pen," JJ said loudly. "Just let me know when you have something."

She hung up the phone and began pacing the office as a way to keep her wits about her. Sure, she knew her daughter wanted new experiences but she never thought one of those experiences would get her arrested! Didn't she realize that an arrest could keep her out of law school? Not to mention, she would have a criminal record! She had to keep telling herself not to book an airline ticket to Berkeley because all she wanted to do was drag her daughter home, kicking and screaming if need be.

As if he was reading his wife's mind, Dave began typing furiously on his computer. "If we can get to Dulles in the next hour, we can catch a six o'clock flight to San Francisco. After that, we can rent a car and take a long ride home with her and while we're on the road, we can reiterate our expectations for her and one of those expectations is that she will avoid activities that lead to her arrest!"

"Dave, we can't just-"

He didn't let his wife continue. "No. Don't try to stop me on this one, Jen! She was arrested, for the love of God! I know she wanted to shed, what she perceived to be, her nerdy, goody-goody image but his is NOT the way to do it!"

JJ opened her mouth to argue, but her boss beat her to it. "I agree with Dave, JJ," he told her. "Something like this could keep her from becoming a lawyer! At the very least, she'll find it harder to find a job with a criminal record. She-" At that moment, Garcia walked into the office with Emily following behind her. Emily had heard the brouhaha and had pumped Garcia for information. Now that she knew what was going on, there was no WAY she was going to miss Abby's call. Plus, she figured the girl could use at least one person on her side and she was probably the most neutral person in the room.

"Okay people," Garcia said authoritatively as she opened her laptop. "I have the arrest report." Everyone in the room winced as Abby's mug shot appeared on the computer screen. "According to SFPD, Abby was arrested for disorderly conduct last night, but it's not as bad as-" she was cut off by a dinging on Dave's computer.

"That's Abby," he said as he reached for the mouse. Everyone in the office gathered near him so they could be a part of things.

"Hi dad," the teen said once the connection was made. "How are you doing?"

"Well I was doing pretty well until I learned my daughter was arrested last night," he told her through clenched teeth. Was she really going to try and act like nothing was wrong? If so, she was in for an unpleasant surprise.

"Would you please hear me out before you go ballistic?" Abby asked loudly. Suddenly, the webcam swung around and her mother's angry face filled the screen.

"You need to watch your tone, young lady," she said tightly. "We're about two minutes away from jumping on a plane to San Francisco and believe me, if that happens, your father and I won't be the only ones leaving. Catch my drift?"

Abby nodded and took a deep breath; she knew her father would be pissed about the arrest and she should've known her mother would have been less than happy. She only hoped that after she told them what had happened, her mother would be on her side. Maybe Emily and Pen could help with that since they were in the room because she was fairly certain her Uncle Aaron would be firmly on her father's side.

"You guys need to let her talk," Garcia said. "It's really not that bad. In fact, I'm proud of her for what she did!"

"Okay, what happened?" JJ asked, a bit more calm and curious about her daughter's actions.

"So last night, the Miss America pageant people were holding recruitment/informational meeting at UCSF. They kept advertising it as a 'scholarship program,' but come on! What scholarship contest makes their applicants strut around in swimsuits and evening gowns? Everyone knows what it's really all about!"

"Okay, you're right about that," JJ agreed as she moved behind her husband so they could both see their daughter and she could see them.

"Anyway, a bunch of us decided to go to it and ask questions about it. They got the standard questions about beauty requirements and that kind of thing and the organizers kept saying that any girl, oh yeah, they kept calling us _girls_, could sign up for it but we all know that's bullshit. So finally Jessica, my roommate, asked why the _women_ who signed up for the competition had to give their measurements, including their bust sizes, if it wasn't about their looks. The Miss America people didn't answer and kicked her out of the auditorium. She refused and security hauled her out. Then it was my turn to ask a question."

"Oh shit," Dave muttered, verbalizing everyone's inner thought. "What did you ask?"

Abby looked down at her desk instead of at her father. "Um, there were a couple of older guys there representing the pageant and I asked them to give us their penis sizes."

"You did what?" Dave asked tiredly as both Garcia and Emily tried not to burst into laughter. Thankfully they were on the far side of the camera range and Abby couldn't see their reactions.

"Well it's only fair!" The teen exclaimed indignantly. "They ask for the contestants breast sizes, so if that's okay, why can't I ask them for their penis sizes?"

"What happened after you asked your question?" JJ asked, feeling better about the whole thing. Sure, she wasn't exactly proud that her daughter had been arrested, but she did it while standing up for her beliefs and she had a very valid point.

"They kicked me out and I refused to leave without an answer. That's when security escorted me out of the building and into a waiting police car. When I asked why I was being arrested, they told me that by refusing to leave the meeting when asked, I was being arrested for disorderly conduct."

"Do they have a case, Hotch?" Dave asked his friend.

Hotch pinched the bridge of his nose in order to ward off the impending headache. "Not really. As long as Abby wasn't violent toward security when they escorted her out. Were you?" He asked his niece, who shook her head.

"No…I mean, I shouted some anti-Miss America things as I was leaving, but I didn't resist them or anything," she told him. "Plus, they let me and Jess go after only a few hours; the Miss America organization doesn't want the negative publicity so they're not going to press charges against us."

"You should be fine then and since the event wasn't on the Berkeley campus, your school won't be able to do anything to you either," Hotch said. "You lucked out after doing an incredibly stupid thing."

"Hey!" Emily said, affronted by her husband's reaction. "She had every right to ask that question! If they're going to ask women for their bust sizes, then they shouldn't have any problem giving their groin sizes."

"It's different, Emily," Hotch told her in a tone that implied she was being ridiculous.

"How exactly is it different, boss man?" Garcia asked huffily. Hotch, not wanting to see his entire electronic livelihood disappear, didn't push the issue.

"It just is," he said, unable to come up with a convincing argument. Thankfully for him, at that moment Agent Anderson popped his head into the room.

"Sir," he said. The Portland police chief is on the phone for you. He said he has a consult with you and Agent Prentiss scheduled for this afternoon."

"We'll be right there," he told the younger agent, relieved that he would have more time to come up with an answer. He knew if he didn't, he would be sleeping in Jack's empty room that night. "I'll call you later tonight, Abby," he promised as he left the room with his wife.

"Can't wait," she said with a roll of her eyes.

"You're lucky I have to go show the director how to use his email effectively, or else you and I would be having words," Garcia told Dave and then turned to face Abby. "Keep your chin up, sweets; you were standing up for what you believe in and there's nothing wrong with that."

"Thanks Pen," Abby said to the woman as she left the office. Once Pen was gone, she was alone with her parents and, for the life of her, she couldn't gauge their reactions. "Um, so how dead am I?"

"You were arrested, Abby! Do you think we're happy about it?" Dave asked her. "And yeah, I know you think you were doing it for a good cause, but the fact of the matter is that the Miss America people would have been well within their rights to press charges against you. And then what? Do you really think any law school would take you after that? Do you really think it would have helped you find a job after graduation? Do you ever think about anything before you act? You're lucky we're not yanking you out of that school and enrolling you at Georgetown!"

"That's enough Dave," JJ said quietly as she saw her daughter's face crumple. "While I'm not thrilled that our daughter spent time in jail last night, she was standing up for her beliefs and she spoke out about a disgusting and outdated double standard. She also has a point; if the pageant is going to ask for the contestants measurements, then they should have no problem giving their own. Besides, she wasn't violent and, other than not leaving when she was asked to, it sounds like she followed all of the instructions the officers gave her."

"I did, you can check the arrest report," Abby told her, hoping to gain points in her favor.

"So I don't think we need to hop on the next flight to drag her home kicking and screaming," JJ told Dave and Abby sighed in relief.

"Thanks mom, I knew you would understand."

"I do to a point," she said. "You should have left when they asked you to leave and then protested outside of the building. You didn't have to go to jail just to prove a point."

"Exactly!" Dave said. "If you want to protest something, fine but you have to do it within the law."

"Okay, I get it, I should've left when they told me to."

"And you should be taking this much more seriously," JJ admonished. "Even though they dropped the charges, this is still a big deal and you need to realize there could have been serious ramifications for you."

"I do get it mom, and I'm sorry for thinking this wasn't a big deal."

"All right then," JJ said and then changed the subject. "So what are your plans for tonight?"

"Jess and I are going to go get dinner in the cafeteria and then we're meeting up with our friends Fish and Bleep at a movie showing in the student union," Abby told her.

"Fish and Bleep? What kind of nicknames are those?" Dave asked with a slight smile as he remembered his own college days.

"Well Bleep tends to swear a lot, which is why we call him Bleep. You know, like the bleep censors on TV? And Fish…um, well, he kind of drinks a lot when he parties…he drinks like a fish," she told him. "Actually, I'm supposed to meet Jess fairly soon."

"Well far be it from us to keep you from dinner," JJ said. "I'm going to have Hotch look everything over to make sure there won't be any repercussions from your actions last night and I'll call you tomorrow. I would also guess that you'll receive a number of phone calls from various friends and family members."

"Great," Abby said with a groan. After a few more minutes of smalltalk, the three of them said their goodbyes and signed off. Once the Skype connection had been broken, Dave sat back in his chair and sighed loudly.

"I thought it would be easier once she was older," he said. "But it's not."

"I know," JJ said as she sank down onto his lap. "Are we crazy for wanting to do this again?"

"Hell no!" Dave told her. "As frustrating as our daughter is at times, I wouldn't trade the experience of being a parent for anything in the world. Besides, she'll be home soon for Thanksgiving and then Christmas and maybe she'll center herself while she's here."

"I hope so," JJ said. "I miss her, Dave."

"Me too, honey, but Thanksgiving is only a few weeks away and we'll see her then."


	19. Chapter 19

_Changes-Chapter 19  
_

* * *

"Are you sure you don't want to ride to the airport together?" Jessica asked Abby as she threw a magazine in her carry-on bag. "Bobby would be happy to take an extra person and, with us, you won't have to deal with taking the BART."

"Meh, I'm used to public transportation," Abby told her as she threw a pair of jeans into her suitcase. "Besides, my flight doesn't leave for another four hours; I really don't want to be stuck in the airport for that long twiddling my thumbs."

"Okay, as long as you're sure," her roommate said as she zipped up her bag. "You have fun on the East Coast."

"And you have fun down in Texas," Abby replied as she gave her a hug. It was the Wednesday before Thanksgiving and just about everyone was heading out for the long weekend. She was packing in order to catch her one o'clock flight home to DC and, while she would only be home for four days, she was having trouble with over packing; specifically, she was trying to shove the entire contents of her closet into her small carry-on suitcase. It was stupid, especially since she'd left some of her clothing back at the cabin, but she wanted the clothes she was comfortable with. Turning up the music on her iPod speakers, she cracked open a can of Pepsi and continued to pack. She was just putting the last pair of socks in the bag when her cell phone rang.

"Hey mom," she said, recognizing the ringtone. "I know you guys are supposed to get snow, but my flight is still showing on time."

"Abby," JJ began but her excited daughter talked over her.

"Oooh, do you think we could pick up Five Guys on the way home from the airport? There aren't any near campus and I am _craving _it!"

"Sweetie," her mom tried again and Abby talked over her yet again.

"Oh, did you get a turkey? And have you had it in the fridge for the past few days so it can defrost?" She asked as she mentally planned the preparation and timing of the meal. "Because it can take awhile for it to completely thaw and I don't-"

"Pumpkin," Dave broke in so he could stop her chatter.

"Oh, hi dad! I didn't know you were conferenced in," Abby replied as she started packing her cosmetics.

"I am," he said. "Your mom and I are on a case in Louisiana and we don't have much time to talk."

"Oh?" The teen said in a normal tone of voice, but she had a sinking feeling in her stomach. Her parents wouldn't call her in the middle of a case just to check up on her. No, it had to be about something else and her gut told her she wouldn't like the reason. Her feeling was proved correct as her mother spoke again.

"Honey, your dad and I aren't going to make it back in time for Thanksgiving," she said sadly; she knew her daughter had been excited about coming home and she felt horrible that she would have to cancel her trip.

"Oh," Abby said again but this time the disappointment and hurt could be clearly heard in her words.

"I'm so sorry, Abby," JJ gushed, feeling like the worst mother in the world. "I know you were looking forward to coming home."

"Yeah, I really was," the teen said in a choked voice as she tried to hold back her tears. Sure, her mom had missed birthdays and holidays in the past, but it hadn't happened in years and she had forgotten just how much it sucked. "Maybe I'll come to DC anyway; I can always spend the holiday with Nonna."

"Nonna's not going to be there, Pumpkin," Dave said, hating that he was crushing her plans even further. "She decided to go down to Florida with Anna and her husband. I think it would probably be best if you stayed in California."

"Okay," Abby said and both of her parents could hear the unshed tears in her quivering voice. "But I can't stay in the dorms; they close over the holidays and I didn't make prior arrangements to stay here."

"We know and we wouldn't dream of making you stay in the dorms for Thanksgiving. No, your mother made a reservation for you at the Omni Hotel in downtown San Francisco; it's rated as the best hotel in the city and it's supposed to be pretty swanky."

"Fine, I guess I'll spend the long weekend there," she said with absolutely no enthusiasm in her voice. If they thought she was going to be excited about staying in a nice hotel for the weekend, they were dead wrong.

"Honey, I am SO sorry about this; I promise it'll be the last-" Abby interrupted her mother before she could make a promise that she couldn't keep.

"Yeah, whatever mom, I get it," she said as a hint of anger crept into her teary voice. "Look, I should let you both go, I've gotta re-pack now that I'm staying here."

"Okay," JJ sighed. "We should probably go too, we have to deliver the profile in a few minutes."

"Abby, charge whatever you want to the hotel room, okay?" Dave said. "Food, movies, spa services, whatever. Also, use the credit card I gave you for whatever you do this weekend."

"Fine."

"We love you, honey," JJ said sadly; Abby hadn't been the only one looking forward to the long weekend. No, both JJ and Dave couldn't wait to have her home again and the cancelled plans were a major disappointment for them as well.

"Yeah, I love you too." And with that, Abby disconnected the call.

As soon as the call ended, JJ wiped her eyes. "This really sucks, Dave. I always feel so bad when I have to be away from her on a special occasion."

"I know you do, Jen but she'll understand; this is what our jobs are, we can't help it that an unsub decided to start kidnapping infants right now."

"She shouldn't have to understand! She should be able to come home and spend Thanksgiving with her family!"

Dave sighed, "Trust me Jen, she's going to be living in luxury for the next four days. If anything, she'll like it so much that we'll have to drag her home for Christmas."

An idea popped into JJ's head. "You're probably right Dave; why don't you go back and join the rest of the team? I'll be there in a minute." She watched as her husband walked away and then dialed a familiar number.

xxxxxxxxxx

Two hours later, Abby stepped out of the BART station, walked three blocks and entered the Omni Hotel. As soon as she entered, she could see that her father hadn't been exaggerating about it's opulence. Hanging in the lobby was a huge, crystal chandelier. The décor was classy and tasteful and there were small table and chair sets throughout it. She spent a moment taking everything in before approaching the front desk.

"Can I help you, miss?" The clerk asked as he looked up from his computer.

"Hi, I'm supposed to have a reservation here for the weekend," she said politely. Inside, she was still barely holding back tears of disappointment over her ruined weekend plans but she hadn't wanted to go across the city with red, puffy eyes so she had not shed any tears yet, but she knew all bets would be off once she got to her room.

"Your name?" The clerk asked.

"Abigail Rossi," she said as she put her driver's license on the counter.

"Ah yes, your parents called just a few hours ago and reserved one of our California suites for you," he said. "They also left a credit card on file and told us to charge any of your expenses to the account."

"Great, thanks," she said as grabbed the handle of her wheeled suitcase.

"Do you need any help with your bags?" He asked as he handed her the room key card. Abby shook her head. "Your parents also paid for our 'Thanksgiving Feast' to be delivered to your room tomorrow. What time would you like it to arrive?"

Abby thought for a minute. "Is four o'clock available?" The clerk nodded and entered the information into the computer.

"Enjoy your stay with us, Miss Rossi and please let us know if there is anything you need."

"Thank you," she said and then headed for the elevators. It was a short ride up to the sixth floor and, within minutes, she opened the door to her suite. As she stepped into it, she was in awe of how large and elegant the room was. The living room was elegantly decorated but the furniture looked comfortable. There was a sofa, two lounge chairs, a coffee table, desk, desk chair and bureau in the room. On top of the bureau sat a large, flat-screen TV which she was sure she would use a lot during her stay. She went into the bedroom to unpack and found a king-sized bed that sported luxurious bedding and more pillows than she could count. On one of the nightstands next to the bed, there was a docking station for her iPod and the remote control for another large, flat-screenTV. Finally, she went into the large bathroom and saw the room had a Jacuzzi tub.

She smiled as she went back into the living room and looked out at the city, but her smile quickly turned into tears as the feelings of disappointment and abandonment overtook her. She sat down on the sofa and had a good, long cry.

xxxxxxxxxx

The rest of the day went by quickly for Abby. After her tears had finally stopped, she soaked in the Jacuzzi for hours and then wrapped herself up in one of the plush robes she found hanging in the closet. After that, she talked to Nonna, who was incensed that her only granddaughter was spending the holiday alone and she'd offered to fly out to San Francisco that night. Abby talked her out of it, because she knew that her Aunt Anna was probably looking forward to having her mother with her for the holiday, and then they talked about other topics for another hour. When she hung up with Nonna, she realized she was ravenous and she had room service deliver a steak dinner to her suite. She then ordered a movie from the hotel movie system and ate her dinner while losing herself in one of the newest romantic comedies.

At around ten o'clock, she began to feel very sleepy. Usually she stayed up much later, but she hadn't slept well the night before and she was still emotionally exhausted. While the hotel suite was luxurious, it still wasn't the cabin and she was starting to feel very lonely and homesick.

Just as she was about to burst into tears for the umpteenth time that day, there was a knock at the door. Wondering who was at her door so late at night, Abby made sure her robe was secured tightly, looked through the peep hole and then let out a whoop of excitement.

She unlocked the security bolt, flung the door open and happily exclaimed, "Jack!"


End file.
